(Update) U.S. Marine Sentenced to 7 Yrs for Sexual Assault in Okinawa

   Naha, Okinawa Pref., June 24 (Jiji Press)--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, southern Japan, in May last year.
   Presiding Judge Kazuhiko Obata described the behavior of U.S. Marine Lance Cpl. Jamel Clayton as "so dangerous that it could have threatened her life and was highly malicious."
   The sentence compares with prosecutors' request for a 10-year prison term for him. During his trial, Clayton asserted his innocence, claiming that he did not try to have intercourse with the woman or use violence against her. The defense side plans to appeal the ruling.
   The judge noted that the woman's testimony about the incident was completely reasonable and had "concreteness and reality that can be provided by nothing but experience."
   Considering that the woman reported the incident to police immediately and sent a message to a friend a few hours later about what had happened, which matched her testimony, the presiding judge concluded that the woman's evidence was trustworthy.

(2025/06/24-21:58)