Hawaii-based US Marine in hazing-suicide case goes to trial
A Hawaii-based lance corporal accused of hazing a fellow Marine who committed suicide while in Afghanistan will appear in court Monday after agreeing to a plea bargain, The Associated Press reports.
In October, Lance Cpl. Jacob D. Jacoby was referred to a general court-martial on charges that he assaulted, threatened, and humiliated Lance Cpl. Harry Lew, who killed himself with a machine gun in Afghanistan on April 3.
Jacoby instead is scheduled Monday to appear before a special court martial after reaching a plea agreement, AP reports. The Marine Corps did not release details of the agreement ahead of the trial.
The case is another public spotlight on the issue of hazing in the military, highlighting both the problem of bullying as well as the military's overall struggles to get a handle on suicides.
In another case, eight U.S. troops are facing charges in the death of Pvt. Danny Chen, 19, who was found dead of “an apparent self-inflicted gunshot wound” in a guard tower in Afghanistan in October.
In the Lew incident, two other Marines also have been accused of hazing the 21-year-old nephew of U.S. Rep. Judy Chu, of California, the AP reports on the hazing case.
