allegedly killed by a comrade, and a mother's pain. did the victim face sexual harassment before she was killed? >> my sister deserves r swrrks srespect! she deserves to be heard. >> now taking aim at the army. >> the "me too" movement really hasn't occurred in the military prior to this, because survivors were afraid to speak out. >> inside one family's desperate search for answers. >> this is a special edition of "nightline." "i am vanessa guillen." >> tonight a soldier's story. a 20-year-old army specialist who took an oath to defend the united states against all

enemies, foreign and domestic. the enemy she faced might have been right there on her military base. here's john quinones. >> the last 75 days for me, for my family, i haven't slept. >> reporter: she's only 16 years old. but for three months now, since the disappearance of her sister, lupe's life has been consumed by agony and fear. >> a nightmare. i would never in my lifetime think i should be fighting for my sister. >> reporter: she first went missing from ft. hood in april. she was eventually found brutally murdered. her mother gloria left to find comfort in her dreams. does she talk to you in her dreams? [ speaking in foreign

>> reporter: tonight, a family's quest for justice. launching a movement under the #iamvanessaguillen. >> she's like a sister for everyone now. >> reporter: vanessa's story now invoking outrage over sexual harassment and abuse in the military. >> how is it possible to go missing on base? on a military base? >> reporter: allegations that she was harassed by one of her own. before she was murdered. >> this family, it's just hilik any family deserves answers. the lack of transparency through this whole process was despicable. >> she's going to be heard, and she's going to be remembered. >> reporter: does this make you feel good? [ speaking in foreign language ]

what was she like? >> soccer. >> reporter: an athlete at heart, her family tells us, marathons were her passion. and even from a young age, one thing was clear. vanessa's sense of duty to her country, the place where she was born and raised, the united states. high school prom? [ speaking in foreign >> reporter: she knew at 10 years old she wanted to go to the army? [ speaking in foreign language ] >> reporter: when she turned 18, she signed with the army. you didn't want her to go. [ speaking in foreign language ] >> reporter: she would eventually be assigned to ft.

hood, just hours away from her home in houston, the place where glor they raised their six children. but then came that horrific day, april 22nd, when vanessa suddenly disappeared. her father tells me that same afternoon he felt a pain in his heart, something was just not right. [ speaking in foreign language ] >> reporter: what do you think it was? [ speaking in foreign language ] >> reporter: vanessa had vanished without a trace. her family became worried when vanessa stopped responding to text messages. her older sister, myra, drove to ft. hood, but she arrived so late at night that she was turned away at the gate. she went back the following morning. authorities told myra, her

sister's car keys, room key, i.d. and wallet were found in the armory room where she worked. but vanessa was nowhere in sight. the military launching an investigation on april23rd. but vanessa's family leaves ft. hood with more questions than answers. now looking back, vanessa's mother tells me she started seeing changes in her daughter months before, as soon as she was stationed at ft. hood. [ speaking in foreign language ] >> reporter: she says she confronted her daughter, and vanessa told her she was being sexually harassed by a superior, but she didn't report it, out of fear of retaliation. [ speaking in foreign language ]

>> reporter: so she never gave you a name. the army tells abc news that they provide multiple avenues for reporting sexual misconduct, both within and outside the chain of command to ensure every soldier has the ability to seek help and has a safe work environment. for weeks, the guillens have been pleading for answers. the family's attorney accusing ft. hood of keeping them in the dark. was the military being forthcoming with information? >> not at all. it was very, very concerning. when we asked the questions, who was vanessa with that day? who called her in? they wouldn't answer. they were very defensive about it. vanessa would have had to check in at 5:00 a.m., 9:00 a.m.,

3:00, and 4:00 p.m. why did it require myra to call you? you should know when she didn't check in. >> reporter: vanessa was last seen wearing a black tee shirt and purple leggings in the parking lot of her reggemental engineer squadron headquarters. the family desperate to find vanessa alive, going public with their story, myra delivering this message to her sister. >> hold on, you're going to be back home. >> reporter: the story of vanessa's disappearance gaining attraction. >> she was sexually harassed. >> reporter: protesters gathering outside ft. hood, demanding justice. [ speaking in foreign language ] epter: two months after guillen's disappearance,

investigators would locate unidentified remains in bell county, texas, about 20 miles away from the base. >> it's not confirmed yet whether it's my sister or not, but at this point, everything points to it. >> reporter: the family continued to seek answers. the youngest sister's pain laid bare for the world to see. >> my sister's a human too! she deserves respect! she deserves to be heard! because if this can happen to my sister, it can happen to any one else. >> reporter: you're 16 years old? >> i'm 16. >> reporter: did you ever think you would be fighting like this? >> no one should be fighting for their sister's life. my sister was not safe. >> reporter: on july 1st, the family would learn there was a suspect in vanessa's

disappearance. 20-year-old army specialist, aaron robinson. >> as officers attempted to make contact with the suspect, he produced a weapon and committed suicide by shooting himself. >> reporter: when you found out that robinson had killed himself, what did you think? >> that he was a coward. >> reporter: a criminal compl n complaint was filed against robinson's alleged girlfriend, accused of covering up the killing. she's revealed to investigators that robinson told her he struck a female of soldier in the head with a hammer multiple times, killing her on ft. hood, adding that robinson then placed her in a box. cecily aguilar is now in jail, held without bond. she has pled not guilty to charges relating to helping dispose of vanessa's body. at ft. hood, the tomorrow army commander tells reporters the

continuing investigation limits the amount of information he can provide. >> what i was able to share was tempered by my responsibility to protect the integrity of the investigation, so that we could, a, find vanessa, b, prosecute those responsible for this travesty. i just wish i could have done a better job balancing those two needs. >> reporter: the army tells abc news that since vanessa's disappearance, more than 500 soldiers and army criminal investigation command agents searched for her in ft. hood and throughout central texas. they add that cid agents have conducted more than 300 interviews and are working closely with multiplegencies. back in houston, on july 5th, the guillen family received the confirmation they had long dreaded. >> hopefully it's not her. i pray to you, god, if it's not her, i'm going to do what i

promised you. >> reporter: gloria says she can't bear to know the details of how her daughter was killed. you know the details. >> the whole thing, yeah. [ speaking in foreign language ] >> reporter: vanessa will be laid to rest later this month. her mother telling us she expects a military funeral. it's what vanessa would have wanted. [ speaking in foreign language ] >> reporter: when we come back -- >> my sister will make history. >> reporter: what the family says they're doing to make sure this never happens again. you this quarter. cool? drop the taco. get in the car. does this sentra feel like a compromise to you? wait, what...? the handling is good, right? no compromise there. nope! watch this... umm... b-brie...brie brie!

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the death and disappearance of 20-year-old vanessa guillen sparking outrage across the nation. here's abc news correspondent and major with the reserves, stephanie ramos.

[ speaking in foreign language ] >> reporter: inside vanessa guillen's childhood home the bedroom she shared with her sister myra, frozen in time. [ speaking in foreign >> reporter: for her mother gloria, those memories now clouded by anger, stemming from what she alleges were the military's missteps in the investigation of her dotaryaugh disappearance and murder. [ speaking in foreign language ] >> reporter: allegations that the army specialist was sexually harassed before she went missing have brought renewed attention to what many call a systemic problem within the military, a culture where sexual harassment and assault are downplayed, leading to underreported cases

and lack of accountability. >> my sister! she's no one's property! she's no sexual trick! >> the "me too" movement hasn't occurred in the military. >> reporter: the chief prosecutor for the air force served in several high-profile cases of sexual assault. >> her story is resonating with the american people and the men and women serving, this can be something that drives the military to finally accept that they're failing at this, and most importantly, get accountability for survivors. >> reporter: a pentagon report released last year shows the amount of reported military sexual assaults increased between 2016 and 2018, from about 14,900 to 20,500 cases. and an estimated one in four service women experienced some sort of sexual harassment in

2018. both sexual assault and sexual harassment are considered crimes in the military justice system, but it's up to commanders to decide whether or not to bring charges. >> and so the person who's making that decision to start this prosecution process always knows the person who is being investigated. and they often know the victim as well. so there's this conflict that's built into the system. >> reporter: an army official recently told abc news that in the course of their investigation into vanessa's disappearance, they found information that pointed to some harassment, but the harassment was not sexual. the fwguillen family waennts an independent look into what happened to vanessa. >> we can't have the fox watch the hen house. >> reporter: her story reefiach the nation's capitol. when congresswoman jackie speier

heard the details of the death and investigation, she was outraged. >> i think that vanessa's horrific death and murder has crystallized how bad the situation is. >> reporter: she co-wrote this letter, with senator kiersten gillibrand, asking for the department of defense to investigate the army's response to vanessa's death, calling the institution fundamentally broken. what are some concrete actions and legislative policies that can be enacted in the future to prevent sexual harassment and assault from happening in the military? >> the need to take these cases out of the chain of command so that victims feel that they will have a fair evaluation of their case is critical. there has to be more prosecutions. >> reporter: for the last decade, lawmakers have introduced bills to try to exi reporting system, with little

success. vanessa's familiar shri advocati advocating that an independent agency investigate reports and are working with congress on a bill they plan to unveil later this month. by sharing vanessa's story, the family hopes other service men and women feel empowered to speak up. [ speaking in foreign language ] >> reporter: vanessa's sisters hope her legacy will live on through meaningful change. >> i hope that everyone remembers her as a hero. i will remember her as the best big sister. the most wonderful person by my side, and she's still going to be by my side, and i will

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in their campaign to end sexual harassment and assault in the u.s. military, vanessa guillen's family attorney tells us they plan on meeting with president trump at the end of this month. that's "nightline" for this evening. thanks for the company, america, goodnight. >> dicky: from hollywood, it's "jimmy kimmel live," with guest host, sebastian maniscalco. tonight, alex rodriguez, and our health care hero of the week. and now, here's sebastian maniscalco. >> sebastian: hello and welcome to "jimmy kimmel live!" i'm sebastian maniscalco back again for a second night.

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