
"Women serving in the military today are more likely to be raped by a fellow soldier than be killed by enemy fire in Iraq," Harman said.
A GAO report released today found that instances of rape and sexual assault are under-reported in the military by as much as half.
The GAO report found some victims in the military do not report sexual assault because they fear "that nothing will be done; fear of ostracism, harassment, or ridicule; and concern that peers would gossip."
Lawmakers could not ask Dr. Kaye Whitley, director of the Sexual Assault Prevention and Response Office at the Pentagon, to address the issue of sexual assault and what steps have been taken because Deputy Defense Undersecretary Michael Dominguez had barred Whitley from testifying, despite a Congressional subpoena.
Dominguez told the lawmakers he knew everything about the program and didn't need Whitley's input to answer their questions.
Dominguez was given a bipartisan dressing down on this point by Rep. Henry Waxman, D-Calif., who chairs the Oversight Committee. "I don't know who you think elected you to defy the congress of the United States," he said.
Rep. Chris Shays, R-Conn., the ranking member, said he will support Waxman's pledge to hold Whitley and Dominguez in contempt. They dismissed Dominguez without taking his testimony.
Testifying alongside Lauterbach was Ingrid Torres, who told the lawmakers that when she moved overseas as a Red Cross worker assigned to the American military, she was excited "to be doing a job that could make a difference to those serving their country, especially during a time of war."
But a year later in Korea, Torres was raped in her sleep by a military doctor after taking an Ambien.
The perpetrator, then the installation flight doctor, has since been convicted, kicked out of the military and placed in confinement. But Torres said the military has a long way to go helping female soldiers and civilians who are the victims of rape and sexual assault.