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A powerful Puget Sound-area advocate for sexually assaulted military veterans has climbed out of her sickbed to help Army Spc. Suzanne Swift, the Fort Lewis military police woman who went AWOL after, she alleges, being sexually assaulted and harassed by three sergeants.
Susan Avila-Smith of Enumclaw, founder and director of Women Organizing Women Inc., took leave from her job this year to fight breast cancer but visited Swift, who is believed to suffer post-traumatic stress disorder from her experiences, last week.
"Cancer is curable. PTSD is not," said Avila-Smith, a veteran who also suffers from post-traumatic stress disorder, in explaining why she wanted to help Swift.
In addition, Swift's lawyers asked her to be a volunteer consultant in the case, she said.
Swift, 21, of Eugene, Ore., did not leave her mother's home in Oregon to accompany her unit on its second deployment to the Iraq war zone in December. She already had served in the war zone for a year, where she says she was sexually assaulted and harassed. She was arrested last month at her mother's house on a warrant for being absent without leave.
Except to go off base to buy necessities with her mother, Swift generally has been confined to Fort Lewis since her arrest. However, she has been transferred to a new unit.
A colonel outside Swift's chain of command was appointed to look into her allegations while commanding officers investigate the AWOL case, Fort Lewis officials said.
Avila-Smith, meanwhile, is endorsing an online petition on Swift's behalf demanding that the Defense Department live up to its sexual-harassment policies. The petition quickly gathered 3,000 names from across the nation and has a goal of 900,000.
"We are asking the government to enforce their sexual-harassment policy, rather than protect the perpetrators -- currently all three (alleged) offenders are free, while she is in custody," Avila-Smith said.
For Swift's 22nd birthday Saturday, her family and supporters are urging a national day of action on her behalf. A rally and vigil are planned for noon outside Fort Lewis at Exit 119 off Interstate 5. Another in her hometown, Eugene, is planned for noon at the Federal Building.
Sara Rich, Swift's mother, could not be reached for comment Tuesday. On a Web site supporting her daughter, however, she said Swift has been moved to another military police unit.
Rich said a colonel she spoke with assured her that the captain of the new unit is "one of the best." Rich tended to agree.
Rich also said she was allowed to spend time comforting her daughter and take her off base to shop for a few necessities.
Success would be to see Swift discharged honorably from the service, her mother and supporters believe.
Avila-Smith, meanwhile, said she met with Swift on July 3. Swift was irritated at the Army's having her take a 700-question psychological test. Avila-Smith sympathized.
"With PTSD those kinds of things are really tedious," Avila-Smith said. She counseled Swift to try to get through it as part of the process to appear before a medical board.
Avila-Smith said she added Swift's case to her 600 clients because it was the right thing to do.
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