A victory for the defense, in which an Army general convicted in a high-profile sexual misconduct trial received a slap on the wrist, will intensify efforts in Congress to reform how the military deals with sexual assault in the ranks, Sen. Patty Murray, D-Wash., said Friday.

“I am really disappointed: It certainly adds to the picture we need to make changes,” Murray said, reacting to the mild reprimand given Brig. Gen. Jeffrey Sinclair.

Sinclair had faced jail time under a plea agreement under which military prosecutors dropped sexual assault charges. The general acknowledged mistreating the Army captain who was his mistress and pleaded guilty to adultery, soliciting explicit pictures from female officers, possessing pornography in a combat zone, and disobeying a commander.

On Thursday, the general was reprimanded but given no jail time. He was allowed to stay in the military. Sinclair will forfeit $5,000 a month in pay for four months, but gets to keep his pension and other benefits.

Sen. Kirsten Gillebrand, D-New York, has pushed a bill that would remove sexual assault cases from the military’s chain of command. Military prosecutors, rather than accusers’ superior officers, would get the power to decide which cases to try.

Attending a meeting at Planned Parenthood in Seattle, Murray was asked by a constituent when the Senate will pass Gillebrand’s bill. The proposed legislation has met resistance from senior members of the Senate Armed Services Committee, including its Chairman Sen. Carl Levin, D-Mich.

“I was down at Joint Base Lewis McChord a few weeks ago,” said Murray. “They have set up a facility for victims, and have created a civilian advocate. That is definitely a step forward. I have seen some actions that at least indicate the military no longer sees this as an issue that can be swept under the rug.”

Murray staged a briefing last year at which assault victims told stories, notably in an Okinawa case in which the victim’s military career was ended while her alleged assailant continued to serve.

The military saw the collapse this week of a second high-profile sexual assault case. On Thursday, a former U.S. Naval Academy football player was found not guilty of assaulting a fellow cadet when she was allegedly too inebriated to consent.

The Naval Academy withdrew a second charge, of making false statements, in exchange for Midshipman Joshua Tate’s agreeing to withdraw from the academy.

The Navy had already decided not to bring charges against two other midshipmen once implicated in the case.

“Irrespective of the verdict in this (Navy) case, how we got here was yet another example of a completely broken military justice system,” Gillebrand said in a statement released Thursday.

“Survivor after survivor has come forward asking for a fair show at justice. When will enough finally be enough and the system reformed so that trained legal professionals are in charge of making these decisions?”

It is “very difficult” to ignore the need for reform “when we see more cases like this,” Murray said of the Sinclair case.

Rep. Suzan DelBene, D-Wash., who appeared with Murray, said “hopefully we will push forward” in the House with legislation to reform military procedures for handling sexual assault “even next week.”

Murray rolled her eyes when asked prospects for Gillibrand’s legislation in the Republican-run House. DelBene was more diplomatic. “We need the leadership to allow floor votes, and to come to the table so we can move forward on this as well as other issues,” she said.