Marine recruiters face sex charges in Ukiah cases

[thedrifter]

Marine recruiters face sex charges in Ukiah cases
2 sergeants to be court-martialed over charges of misconduct with applicants at office
By Glenda Anderson and MIKE GENIELLA
THE PRESS DEMOCRAT

UKIAH - Two Marine Corps recruiters accused of having sex with applicants at their Ukiah office early this year are facing courts-martial on charges of recruiter and sexual misconduct.

Staff Sgt. Joseph Dunzweiler, 24, and Sgt. Brian Fukushima, 25, each face 11 counts of violating the military's code of conduct, Marine Maj. Michael Samarov said Tuesday.

"If these charges are proven to be true, these Marines' behavior is troubling and very disappointing," he said.

The men were suspended from duty in February, immediately after the investigation into their conduct began, Samarov said. They are awaiting separate courts-martial at the 12th Marine Corps District headquarters in San Diego, he said.

The allegations against Dunzweiler and Fukushima include sexual misconduct, making false statements and failure to follow military codes of conduct, Samarov said. He declined to be more specific.

If convicted, they face up to six months confinement, forfeiture of two-thirds of their basic pay and a bad conduct discharge, said Marine Lt. Carolyn Nelson, a spokeswoman for the 12th Marine Corps District.

Barry Vogel, a Ukiah attorney representing an 18-year-old Ukiah woman who went to police in March, said the two Marines had sex with several potential recruits and gave them alcohol at the East Perkins Street recruiting office.

Allegations against Fukushima, who is married, include three charges of adultery, said Marine Capt. Charles McLeod, the prosecutor.

He would not say what the other specific charges are.

The charges against the men are not criminal, said Jon Hamilton, Dunzweiler's attorney. They do not include an allegation made by Vogel's client, then 17, that she was coerced into having sex.

The teenager, who spoke Tuesday on condition of anonymity, said she approached the Ukiah recruiters in October because she wanted to join the Marines. She said Dunzweiler told her sex was required for acceptance into the Marines. She said she also liked Dunzweiler and hoped for a relationship.

"He told me if I wanted to be a Marine, I had to have sex with him," she said Tuesday during an interview at Vogel's office.

She had sex with Dunzweiler three times at the office between Jan. 3 and Feb. 18, according to the police report. She told police the sex was consensual, according to the report.

"She was never threatened or forced to have sex with him," the report stated.

"I was still debating whether I wanted to tell on him or not," the teen said Tuesday.

The police report was forwarded to the Mendocino County District Attorney's Office, which declined to prosecute Dunzweiler. The decision was made by the chief deputy district attorney, who was out of the office Tuesday, District Attorney Norm Vroman said.

The teen initially was reluctant to speak with police about the sex, according to the report. Her stepfather made an appointment for her to speak with detectives after finding out about the incidents, the report said.

She did not initiate the military investigation, which began weeks before she made the police report. The investigation stemmed from an e-mail sent by another woman involved in the case to her ex-boyfriend in Iraq, Vogel's client said.

According to the police report, the teenager lost her virginity to Dunzweiler and contracted a venereal disease, chlamydia, from him.

She said she also has lost her respect for the Marines and her desire to join the Corps.

Hamilton said all the charges made against his client are untrue.

"My position is they're all fabricated," Hamilton said.

The charges come at a time when the military is reeling from recruitment and sex-related scandals.

In 2004, military criminal investigators received 1,700 allegations of sexual assault involving members of the armed forces. Rep. Loretta Sanchez, D-Santa Ana, has introduced legislation to update the Military Code of Uniform Justice to make it easier for military lawyers to prosecute sexual assault cases.

The Marines view the relationship between recruiters and enlistees as like one between a teacher and a student, Samarov said.

"It is a position of trust and it can't be violated," he said.

Ellie

[Osotogary]

Ukiah? Man, oh, man. That is beautiful country up there. Darn shame, if the allegations are proved factual, that something like this could happen in a place like Ukiah. Maybe things have changed but, for the life of me, I always thought of Ukiah as rather pristine. Damn shame.

[GySgtRet]

Having been on recruiting duty myself. A recruiter lives in a glass house. That doesn't deter Marines or anyone else in that setting to take advantage of what they have. These two Marines if found guilty certainly know better than to do what they have done. However, according to the article so did the women know, what was right from wrong.

[Sgt Sostand]

Let Face it how many Marines would face sex charges i would say about 90% at lease i know in the 0300 field

[Joseph P Carey]

Originally posted by Sgt Sostand
Let Face it how many Marines would face sex charges i would say about 90% at lease i know in the 0300 field

Let's face it, Marines in the 0300 MOS are not representing the Marine Corps to the public on a daily basis in their person, but rather in the field. Usually, if you meet an 0300, it is at the other end of his front sights. It is not a meeting many walk away from.

These men in the Brown Shirts and Blue Trousers with their white Barracks covers are the first view of the Marine Corps. As the 0300's acquit themselves well in battle, the Recruiter should acquit himself well in the eye of the public. That is what they were trained for. They should have done their job, and done it well.