NMNG represented at statewide sexual assault conference

Cover Photo Caption: Orvie Baker Jr., Sarah Salazar, Michael Kerkoff, Josie Jahnke, Sgt. 1st Class Veronica C de Baca, Sgt. 1st Class Ian Touchton and Brig. Gen. Nathaniel Carper pose for a group photo.

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. – Members of the New Mexico National Guard participated in the Luminarias Conference at the Isleta Resort & Casino here today.

This was the 3rd Annual Statewide Sexual Assault Conference hosted by the New Mexico Coalition of Sexual Assault Programs.

Brig. Gen. Nathaniel Carper, the NMNG Deputy Adjutant General and Land Component Commander, made opening remarks for the Guard contingent.

“We don’t want this (sexual assault in the military) to happen, but when it does happen, we want to make sure we take the appropriate actions,” Carper said.

Orvie Baker Jr., the Sexual Harassment/Assault Response and Prevention (SHARP) Coordinator for the 93rd Troop Command in Santa Fe, delivered his briefing “Twenty Years of SAPR” (Sexual Assault Prevention and Response) to an attentive audience.

“A lot of people don’t know the extent of our sexual assault program in the military, and they don’t know that we’ve been doing it since 2005,” Baker explained.

Baker began his presentation by urging members of the audience, all of whom are involved with sexual assault response and recovery, not to neglect themselves.

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“I want everybody here to practice self-care because when you’re doing something like this, it’s easy to forget about self-care,” Baker said.

He then focused on caring for survivors of sexual assault.

“The most important thing for us to ask is how we can take care of the survivor,” Baker said. “How can we take care of someone who tells us something they’re afraid to tell anyone else?”

Baker, like many of the Army’s earliest Victim Advocates, was selected because his training and experience as an Equal Opportunity Advisor provided a foundation for listening to sexual assault survivors.

The Army’s SHARP program, he explained, provides victims with two reporting options: unrestricted reporting, which involves the chain of command and triggers a formal investigation, and restricted reporting, which allows the victim to receive services without involving the chain of command or an investigation

“No matter what, if they don’t want to report it, we want them to get the care they need,” Baker said.

He also described the continuum from sexual harassment to sexual assault.

“We learned that every time there was a sexual assault, there was sexual harassment,” he said.

“There is no excuse for sexual harassment/sexual assault,” Baker explained. “Predators are going to be predators. It’s about power and control.”

As SHARP evolved, the Army created the Special Victims Counsel (SVC) staffed by Judge Advocate personnel to guide victims through the legal process.

“A Victim Advocate can’t tell them (survivors) about all the legal stuff, but these guys (SVC) can,” Baker said.

For example, some victims are hesitant to step forward because they fear retaliation either from the chain of command or the accused.

“Retaliation – it’s not allowed in the military,” Baker said. “It’s not acceptable.”

Citing mandatory SHARP training, Baker touted knowledge as the most effective tool available.

“This stuff is still happening today because there’s not enough education about it. Every year Soldiers have to learn about this,” he said.

“If we want to stop this, we can’t just put up a poster,” Baker said. “We have to train and educate them.”

The goal for the military, he said, is creating a safer environment – one in which service members watch out for each other.

“The safest place anyone should be is around people in uniform,” Baker said. “This isn’t just about the education part. It’s about team building.”

Josie Jahnke, the NMNG’s Principle Sexual Assault Response Coordinator (SARC); Michael Kerkoff, SARC for the New Mexico Air National Guard’s 150th Special Operations Wing; Sgt. 1st Class Veronica C de Baca, SARC for the 111th Sustainment Brigade; Sarah Salazar, Victim Advocate for the 111th SB, and Sgt. 1st Class Ian Touchton, Victim Advocate for the 720th Transportation Company, accompanied Baker at the conference.