A new ruling says private companies contracted by the government can now be held accountable if a company employee commits a crime.

While that may seem like a relatively small thing, it’s a ray of hope for the family of Sissy Cox.

Sissy Cox was an airman stationed in Ohio when she was sexually assaulted by a superior.

"She was so happy just to sign up and go and fight for her country, and she got a living hell,” Sissy’s father, Jeff Cox, said.

Sissy was transported to the San Antonio Military Medical Center to be closer to her family, Sissy’s mother – Beatrix Cox - said.

Instead of getting help at the medical center, Sissy was assaulted again - this time by a certified nurse’s assistant that happened to be a contracted employee.

"A nurse raping a patient is just unheard of, and especially in a military hospital. It's just unthinkable,” Jeff Cox said.

Sissy Cox battled depression following the assaults, and took her own life in a hospital parking lot in May 2020.

The nurse's assistant who assaulted Sissy Cox pleaded guilty and received 72 months in federal prison.

The company that hired him, however, had never been held accountable. But with the new ruling, they could be.

According to attorney Tim Maloney, a magistrate judge has been deciding whether or not private contractors who work for the government have the same immunities the government may have.

“And the magistrate ruled they have not," Maloney said. “The ultimate goal is to allow women who've been sexually assaulted some type of avenue for them to seek damages or a remedy for what's happened to them."

Maloney says although this was one small victory, it's not enough.

The Cox family said they'll continue to pursue justice for Sissy.