I don't think the Commander or the COC should be removed from the process, nor do I think the process should be handed over entirely to civilians.
I think that the system that exists now should be added to, not removed, and that civilians should be added in to the mix, not replace military authorities.
The CO should remain the initial deciding authority, but I don't think (s)he should have the final word.
As it is currently the buck stops at the CO's desk.
That should be changed a bit.
I believe that all the CO's decisions in relation to sexual assault charges should be reviewed by a Committee of senior officers and Department of Defense civilians. Both the CO and the Committee should be privy to all the same evidence, and both should be making their determinations to charge/prosecute or dismiss based on that evidence.
In cases where the evidence presented clearly supports the CO's determination (either to dismiss or to prosecute) then there won't be an issue.
In cases where the Committee sees something different than the CO does it doesn't necessarily have to be an issue either, it can simply be a matter of erring on the side of caution when the evidence doesn't support a clear-cut conclusion and letting a Court Martial make the final decision (which is the conclusion COs should be reaching now but apparently aren't).
Now, if the CO makes an egregious error in judgement, or demonstrates a history of making small errors in judgement, then that's something that needs to be taken up by that CO's COC.
But on the face of it I don't think we'll see that kind of situation arising all too frequently under my proposed system even if it is happening now.
Military officers, by and large, are nothing if not masters of the art of self-career preservation.
If they know that there is going to be a committee back-stopping their decisions in respect to sexual assault I think the overwhelming majority will err on the side of caution.
As far as the civilians who will be involved, I think they all need to be DOD civilian employees and I'd prefer to see them all having some experience with the UCMJ. I think former JAG officers would be ideal, as would retired senior officers and NCOs.
I agree with APDST that, by-and-large, fresh-off-the-block civilians aren't qualified to, nor do they deserve to, serve in any capacity overlooking the general day-to-day operation of our military. Likewise, we don't need professional civil rights activists getting themselves involved and turning this into a circus.
But at the same time I think bringing in a set of fresh eyes that is more familiar with judicial matters than most COs likely are and that is independent from any kind of military COC could add value.