U.S. Marine sentenced to seven years for sexual assault in Okinawa
Naha District Court on Tuesday sentenced a 22-year-old U.S. Marine to seven years in prison for nonconsensual sexual intercourse resulting in injury to a woman in Okinawa Prefecture in May last year.
The sentence compares with prosecutors' request for a 10-year prison term for U.S. Marine Lance Cpl. Jamel Clayton. During his trial, Clayton asserted his innocence, claiming that he did not try to have sex or commit violence.
According to the indictment, Clayton assaulted the woman for sexual purposes, putting his arms around her neck and choking her from behind. She suffered injuries that took about two weeks to heal.
In a similar sexual assault case in Okinawa, a 26-year-old U.S. airman was sentenced to five years in prison last December. The defense has appealed the ruling.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Japan Today
2 hours ago
- Japan Today
U.S. Marine in Okinawa gets 7-year term over sexual assault
A Japanese district court on Tuesday sentenced a U.S. Marine stationed in Okinawa Prefecture to seven years in prison for a sexual assault committed in May 2024, concluding that the victim's testimony demonstrated a "high level of credibility." Lance Cpl Jamel Clayton, 22, who pleaded not guilty in the case, was accused of injuring a woman in her 20s by choking her while attempting to rape her. He denied having any sexual intent or using physical force against her. In handing down the ruling, the Naha District Court's Presiding Judge Kazuhiko Obata described the victim's account as "precise and authentic," while noting that she reported the incident to both the police and a friend shortly afterward. Obata also said bloodspots found in her eyes after the assault matched a forensic scientist's assessment that such symptoms appear only when the neck is compressed continuously for at least one to two minutes. Clayton's lawyer said the defendant is considering appealing the ruling. Prosecutors had demanded 10 years in prison. According to the ruling, Clayton choked the woman from behind in Yomitan, Okinawa, on the morning of May 26 last year and attempted to have sexual intercourse with her by unbuttoning her pants. She sustained injuries to both eyes that required about two weeks of treatment. The southern prefecture hosts the bulk of U.S. military installations in Japan, and anti-base sentiment runs deep due to aircraft noise, pollution and crimes committed by American service members. © KYODO
Kyodo News
7 hours ago
- Kyodo News
U.S. Marine in Okinawa gets 7-year term over sexual assault
KYODO NEWS - 5 hours ago - 20:28 | All, Japan A Japanese district court on Tuesday sentenced a U.S. Marine stationed in Okinawa Prefecture to seven years in prison for a sexual assault committed in May 2024, concluding that the victim's testimony demonstrated a "high level of credibility." Lance Cpl. Jamel Clayton, 22, who pleaded not guilty in the case, was accused of injuring a woman in her 20s by choking her while attempting to rape her. He denied having any sexual intent or using physical force against her. In handing down the ruling, the Naha District Court's Presiding Judge Kazuhiko Obata described the victim's account as "precise and authentic," while noting that she reported the incident to both the police and a friend shortly afterward. Obata also said bloodspots found in her eyes after the assault matched a forensic scientist's assessment that such symptoms appear only when the neck is compressed continuously for at least one to two minutes. Clayton's lawyer said the defendant is considering appealing the ruling. Prosecutors had demanded 10 years in prison. According to the ruling, Clayton choked the woman from behind in Yomitan, Okinawa, on the morning of May 26 last year and attempted to have sexual intercourse with her by unbuttoning her pants. She sustained injuries to both eyes that required about two weeks of treatment. The southern prefecture hosts the bulk of U.S. military installations in Japan, and anti-base sentiment runs deep due to aircraft noise, pollution and crimes committed by American service members. Related coverage: U.S. Marines from Okinawa to start moving to Guam barracks in June 70% of prefectures back revising pact governing U.S. troops in Japan
NHK
12 hours ago
- NHK
US Marine in Okinawa sentenced to 7 years in prison for attempted sexual assault
A court in Japan's southern prefecture of Okinawa has sentenced a US Marine to seven years in prison for attempting to sexually assault a woman resulting in injury. Marine Lance Corporal Jamel Clayton, aged 22, was accused of strangling the woman, who he did not know, and subjecting her to other forms of violence on Okinawa's main island in May of last year. In the trial, prosecutors demanded ten years' imprisonment. But the defense raised a number of concerns about the woman's testimony, saying it could not be trusted. The defense claimed the defendant was innocent. At the Naha District Court on Tuesday, presiding judge Obata Kazuhiko pointed out that the woman's testimony was highly credible, saying its explicitness and authenticity can come only through actual experience. The judge described the defendant's actions as dangerous enough to result in death, and extremely vicious. He said, "The woman was attacked suddenly. She foresaw her own death which caused her tremendous mental anguish. She is still suffering from the effects." Neither the Japanese government nor the prefectural police had notified the Okinawa prefectural government about the case at the time of the Marine's arrest. As a result, the prefectural police introduced a notification system last July, in which the prefectural government must be informed when US military personnel are arrested or their papers are sent to prosecutors.
