I 
115TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION H. R. 2739 
To amend title 10, United States Code, to establish additional protections 
for victims of crimes punishable under the Uniform Code of Military Justice. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
MAY 25, 2017 
Mr. TURNER (for himself and Ms. TSONGAS) introduced the following bill; 
which was referred to the Committee on Armed Services 
A BILL 
To amend title 10, United States Code, to establish addi-
tional protections for victims of crimes punishable under 
the Uniform Code of Military Justice. 
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Building an Environ-
ment for Helpful, Effective, and Accessible Representation 
and Decision-making Act’’ or the ‘‘BE HEARD Act’’. 
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SEC. 2. TRAINING FOR SPECIAL VICTIMS’ COUNSELS ON EF-
FECT OF GENDER DIFFERENCES ON VICTIM 
RESPONSE TO SEXUAL ASSAULT. 
In establishing the training requirements for Special 
Victims’ Counsels pursuant to section 1044e(d)(2) of title 
10, United States Code, the Secretary of Defense shall 
develop specific training to assist Special Victims’ Coun-
sels in recognizing and dealing with the effect of gender 
differences on feelings of victimization and response mech-
anisms of victims of sexual assault. 
SEC. 3. COURT OF APPEALS FOR THE ARMED FORCES JU-
RISDICTION TO REVIEW INTERLOCUTORY AP-
PEALS OF DECISIONS ON CERTAIN PETI-
TIONS FOR WRITS OF MANDAMUS. 
Section 806b(e) of title 10, United States Code (arti-
cle 6b(e) of the Uniform Code of Military Justice), is 
amended— 
(1) in paragraph (1), by striking ‘‘paragraph 
(4)’’ and inserting ‘‘paragraph (5)’’; 
(2) by redesignating paragraph (4) as para-
graph (5); and 
(3) by inserting after paragraph (3) the fol-
lowing new paragraph (4): 
‘‘(4) The Court of Appeals for the Armed Forces may 
review for legal error a grant or denial of a petition for 
a writ of mandamus described in this subsection by the 
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Court of Criminal Appeals, upon petition of a victim of 
an offense under this chapter or of the accused, and on 
good cause shown. Any such review shall have priority of 
consideration to the maximum extent practicable.’’. 
SEC. 4. DESIGNATION OF INDIVIDUALS TO ASSUME VICTIM 
RIGHTS UNDER UNIFORM CODE OF MILITARY 
JUSTICE. 
(a) CLARIFICATION OF DESIGNATION AUTHORITY.— 
Section 806b(c) of title 10, United States Code (article 
6b(c) of the Uniform Code of Military Justice), is amend-
ed by inserting after the first sentence the following: 
‘‘(2) The designation authority provided by this sub-
section is discretionary, and designation of an individual 
to assume the rights under this section of a victim who 
is under 18 years of age is not required if the military 
judge determines that the victim can adequately represent 
the victim’s own interests. 
‘‘(3) Until the military judge is detailed, the con-
vening authority may exercise the designation authority 
provided by this subsection.’’. 
(b) CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.—Section 806b(c) of 
title 10, United States Code (article 6b(c) of the Uniform 
Code of Military Justice), is further amended— 
(1) by inserting ‘‘(1)’’ before ‘‘In the case’’; and 
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(2) by striking ‘‘However, in no event may the 
individual so designated’’ and inserting the fol-
lowing: 
‘‘(4) In no event may the individual designated under 
this subsection’’. 
Æ 
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