A court in Japan sentenced a Marine to seven years in prison on Tuesday after it found him guilty of strangling and attempting to sexually assault a Japanese woman in Okinawa last year, the latest development amid a string of reported criminal misconduct by American troops on the island.
The court convicted 22-year-old Lance Cpl. Jamel Clayton of “nonconsensual sexual intercourse causing injury,” according to a spokesperson for the Marine Corps; the verdict was first reported by Stars and Stripes on Tuesday.
In May, Okinawan government leaders formally protested to U.S. and Japanese defense officials following multiple criminal accusations against American service members on the island in the last several years, some of which have resulted in prison sentences such as Clayton’s, while at least one was dropped.
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“The Marine has been in Japanese custody since his indictment that followed the allegation. We cooperated fully with the investigation process,” Capt. Kazuma Engelkemier, the Marine Corps spokesperson, said in an email to Military.com on Wednesday. “This behavior does not reflect the values of the Marine Corps nor does it exemplify the standards the overwhelming majority of our Marines uphold daily.”
When asked, Engelkemier did not say whether Clayton would face military consequences, such as sentencing under the Uniform Code of Military Justice, reduction in rank, discharge or forfeiture of pay.
The recent reports of criminal misconduct have inflamed decades-long tensions with the local Okinawan community, a proportionally tiny island that houses the lion’s share of U.S. military resources and personnel in Japan.
Following the May protest by the local government, which was delivered in the form of letters, U.S. military and Okinawan officials met for the first time under the Okinawa Community Partnership Forum to discuss safety and security strategies, and bolster communication.
Previously, military leaders in Japan instituted restricted liberty policies for troops, curfews, limited drinking hours off base, increased sobriety checks at U.S. installations, and joint patrols between U.S. military leaders, law enforcement and Okinawa City officials not seen in decades.
Engelkemier did not address Military.com’s questions about the effectiveness of those measures and added that there have not been any changes to III Marine Expeditionary Force’s leave and liberty policy since December. Representatives for U.S. Forces Japan did not respond to those inquiries, which included how the efficacy of these policies is being measured.
President Donald Trump’s administration and Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba pledged to usher in a “new golden age” of U.S.-Japanese cooperation earlier this year, which comes at a strategically critical time for the two countries as China attempts to extend its influence in the region.
In January, the top officer in the Marine Corps, Gen. Eric Smith, expressed concern over a U.S. agreement with Japan, as part of a decades-long effort to return Japanese land owned by the military post-World War II that would also require the service to move thousands of Marines out of Okinawa. The move has long been seen as a way to ease tensions with the Japanese public on the island.
He said that the planned relocation “puts us going the wrong way,” distancing the service from its priority theater in the Pacific and adding that, “every time you give China a foot, they take a mile.”
Criminal or otherwise disruptive conduct by U.S. troops in Japan, such as driving incidents, cause local outrage from Okinawan citizens and officials, often pressuring the Japanese central government — which partners with the U.S. for defense, among other interests — and American officials to respond at some of the highest strategic or diplomatic levels.
“These incidents have a strategic effect far beyond their local significance,” retired Marine Col. Mark Cancian, a senior adviser with the Center for Strategic and International Studies, told Military.com in an interview Wednesday. He added that “on the whole, U.S.-Japanese military relations are very good,” and that Japan recognizes its need for a strong ally against China, which the U.S. has provided as Tokyo continues to build its defenses.
But “even in the absence of incidents, [military presence] inflames that local community and potentially might constrain U.S. operations on the island.”
Criminal American troop behavior has sparked outrage from Okinawans for decades, including during one of the most infamous cases in 1995 when a sailor and two Marines kidnapped, beat and raped a 12-year-old Okinawan girl, resulting in an agreement that allows Japanese law enforcement initial custody of U.S. troops suspected of certain crimes.
The 1995 crime spurred discussion between the two governments over reducing the military presence on Okinawa, and the following year, the U.S. and Japan agreed to reduce the amount of land owned by the American military by 21%.
Criminal allegations against U.S. troops continued, including two Marines allegedly punching an elderly Japanese woman in 2023 and at least four reported sexual crimes, including Clayton’s, in 2024.
“I don’t know if they’re effective. I think half the purpose is to show the Okinawans that we’re doing what we can,” Cancian said of the efforts to rein in bad behavior.
Cancian said the majority of troops stationed on Okinawa behave well, despite the inherent difficulties in managing tens of thousands of young troops there, “but because these individual incidents get so much attention, that focuses the community on the Marine Corps presence.”
“You’re not going to solve it,” he added, “but you can manage it.”
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