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STUTTGART, Germany — A new Army hotline for reporting sexual assaults has been established as part of a reorganization of the services provided by the Sexual Harassment/Assault Response and Prevention program, according to the 21st Theater Sustainment Command.

On Friday, the 21st TSC took over lead responsibility of the program from U.S. Army Garrison Kaiserslautern’s Army Community Services. Since its inception in 2009, Kaiserslautern’s ACS has been a first responder for incidents involving sexual assault. Now that the program falls under the 21st TSC, it has expanded to include other Army locations in Europe including Baumholder and Stuttgart.

The 2012 National Defense Authorization Act ordered that the SHARP program, launched in 2009, transition from an installation-based program to one that falls under more senior commanders.

To reflect the change, a new hotline has been set up.

“The phone number change just makes (the 21st TSC) the primary responders,” Sgt. 1st Class Aimee Wilson, the 21st TSC’s SHARP program manager, said in a news release. “The phone number that ACS responds to is still in effect.” Reports of assault can still be made directly to Army Community Services staff instead if a person wants to avoid making a report directly to the 21st TSC, she said.

The new SHARP hotline is DSN 484-7280 or commercial 0631-413-7280. The line is open 24-hours a day, seven days a week.

vandiver.john@stripes.com

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John covers U.S. military activities across Europe and Africa. Based in Stuttgart, Germany, he previously worked for newspapers in New Jersey, North Carolina and Maryland. He is a graduate of the University of Delaware.

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