Cliff Notes
- The coroner’s ruling highlighted the Army’s failure to act on sexual assault and harassment complaints as contributing factors to Gunner Jaysley Beck’s suicide in 2021.
- Beck’s mother expressed deep concern and heartbreak over the continued service of one of the alleged abusers, calling for real action to address the issues of bullying and harassment in the military.
- Recent announcements from the Army regarding the establishment of a specialist taskforce to handle such claims were met with cautious optimism by Beck’s mother, who feels that these changes should have occurred earlier.
Jaysley Beck: Mother of soldier who took her own life says she has ‘sleepless nights’ knowing there are still abusers in the Army | UK News
The mother of a young soldier who took her own life says she has “sleepless nights” knowing there are abusers still serving in the Army.
A coroner ruled that the Army’s failure to take action after 19-year-old Royal Artillery Gunner Jaysley Beck was sexually assaulted by a more senior soldier and harassed by her line manager contributed to her death at Larkhill Camp in Wiltshire in 2021.
One of the men has since left the Army but the other continues to serve.
Gunner Jaysley Beck was found dead at Larkhill Camp in Wiltshire in December 2021
Jaysley Beck’s mother, Leighann McCready, believes he has been protected by the Army.
“Why should they continue to carry on serving when we’re left absolutely heartbroken? We have to deal with this for the rest of our lives and it’s not fair. It’s absolutely not fair that no action’s been taken.”
Reacting to the announcement that claims of sexual harassment in the Army will be removed from the chain of command and instead dealt with by a new, specialist taskforce, Ms McCready said it was a “step in the right direction” but added that “it should have happened a long time ago”.
Last week, a Sky News investigation revealed claims of widespread sexual abuse.
One former soldier described how, after reporting an alleged rape, she discovered the officers dealing with her case had called her a whore.
