The Center for Naval Aviation Technical Training Unit (CNATTU) Oceana hosted Naval Air Station Oceana's 4th annual Denim Day Walk in support of Sexual Assault Awareness and Prevention Month April 13.

More than 230 NAS Oceana Sailors, Marines and civilians participated in the walk which started at the base's Historical Aviation Park and continued down Tomcat Boulevard.

Participants held signs promoting sexual assault awareness and prevention and 95 Sailors and Marines from CNATTU wore denim in support of the event, according to CNATTU Oceana Instructor and Denim Day walk participant Aviation Electronics Technician 1st Class (AW) David A. Kalmon.

"This event is great because not only does it educate all of us participating, but we're spreading awareness to everyone who drives by and sees us," he said.

While April is designated as Sexual Assault Awareness and Prevention Month, National Denim Day is the direct result of an Italian Supreme Court case that drew international attention, effectively shifting the view of sexual assault.

The 1992 case involved a 45-year-old driving instructor who was convicted and sentenced for raping an 18-year-old student who subsequently pressed charges. The charges were overturned by the Italian Supreme Court in 1998, which ruled because the victim had been wearing tight jeans, she must have had to help her attacker remove them making the act consensual. The conviction was overturned and dismissed and women serving in the Italian Parliament protested the ruling by wearing denim jeans to work.

In 2008, the Italian Supreme Court has overturned its findings, and there is no longer a "denim" defense to the charge of rape.

Naval Air Station Sexual Assault Response Coordinator Amy Wade-Smith said events such as the Denim Day Walk help promote the Navy's zero-tolerance policy about sexual assault and encourages service members to take responsibility for their actions.

"Denim Day is so important in itself because there is no excuse for sexual assault," she said. "You can't make excuses, it doesn't matter what it is. What that denim represents is what we will and will not allow as a society."

CNATTU Oceana supports the Department of Defense by providing specialized technical training to aviation maintenance professionals for F/A-18 Hornets and automated test equipment in direct support of genuine and emerging fleet requirements.

CNATTU Oceana is part of the Center for Naval Aviation Technical Training, which provides single site management for Navy and Marine Corps aviation technical training.

CNATT is the technical training agent for the Naval Aviation Enterprise, an organization designed to advance and sustain naval aviation warfighting capabilities at an affordable cost, and is the largest training center under the Naval Education and Training Command.

For more news from Center for Naval Aviation Technical Training, visit www.navy.mil/.