Help The Texas Tribune and ProPublica report on the military justice system

Military investigations can be opaque. The people involved may be the only ones who see how cases move or stall.

ProPublica and The Texas Tribune plan to continue examining the military justice system, which handles more than 1,000 cases a year across all branches. Charges in those cases range from disobeying an officer to murder. We also want to learn more about how the military handles cases that do not make it to courts-martial and how commanders assign nonjudicial punishments.

To help us do this, we’d like to hear from service members, former service members and families about how the military justice system operates, including how it investigates allegations of sexual assault, domestic violence, drug use and noncombat deaths. We are also interested in how military justice intersects with the civilian justice system.

As we embark on this effort, we want to make sure we’re asking the right questions. We hope our work can prevent future harm. To that end, we hope to learn from and speak with military support staff and current and former service members, along with the families of both groups. In particular, we would like to hear from people who have experience at military bases in Texas.

We will read everything you share and keep you updated on our progress.

Our commitment to your privacy: We appreciate you sharing your story and we take your privacy seriously. We are gathering these stories for the purposes of our reporting and will contact you if we wish to publish any part of your story.

About us:

ProPublica is an independent, nonprofit newsroom that produces investigative journalism with moral force. We dig deep into important issues, shining a light on abuses of power and betrayals of public trust — and we stick with those issues as long as it takes to hold power to account.

The Texas Tribune is the only member-supported, digital-first, nonpartisan media organization that informs Texans — and engages with them — about public policy, politics, government and statewide issues.

Some of our organizations’ previous reporting on the military:

The Army increasingly allows soldiers charged with violent crimes to leave the military rather than face trial

A federal watchdog called for ending the practice nearly 50 years ago, but the military pushed back. Now, soldiers leave the Army with a negative discharge, avoiding a possible federal conviction and with little record of the allegations against them.

Twice accused of sexual assault, he was let go by Army commanders. He attacked again.

A first-of-its-kind analysis revealed that soldiers in the Army are more likely to be locked up ahead of trial for drug offenses than for sexual assault under a system that gives commanders control.

Disaster in the Pacific

An investigation into what went wrong in America’s 7th Fleet after a series of deadly naval accidents in the Pacific.

---

---

When you join us at The Texas Tribune Festival Sept. 22-24 in downtown Austin, you’ll hear from changemakers who are driving innovation, lawmakers who are taking charge with new policies, industry leaders who are pushing Texas forward and so many others. See the growing speaker list and buy tickets.