Marine Corps Lance Cpl. Jamel Clayton trains at Rodriguez Live Fire Complex in Pocheon, South Korea, March 7, 2024. (Matthew Morales/U.S. Marine Corps)
NAHA, Okinawa — A Japanese court sentenced a U.S. Marine to seven years in prison on Tuesday after convicting him of strangling and attempting to sexually assault a woman on Okinawa.
A three-judge panel presided over by Judge Kazuhiko Obata and accompanied by six lay judges convicted Lance Cpl. Jamel Clayton, 22, of Ohio, of non-consensual sexual intercourse resulting in injury. He received credit for 270 days in pre-trial detention, Obata said.
A conviction in the lay judge system requires at least one of the three professional judges to vote with the majority. It was unclear how each judge voted.
Clayton sat calmly in front of the judges in the center of the courtroom as the sentence was read, and said, “OK.”
Obata cited the “life-threatening” and “vicious” nature of the injuries the woman sustained as the reason for the sentence’s length.
“In this case, the defendant strangled the small victim by choking her for at least one to two minutes,” Obata said during the sentencing. “Although the injury was limited to bleeding in her eyes, the victim was lucky to survive.”
The Marine Corps cooperated with the investigation into Clayton and “monitored the trial proceedings without interfering in the Japanese judicial process,” 3rd Marine Division spokesman Capt. Kazuma Engelkemier said by email Tuesday.
“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,” he said.
Clayton’s case, and that of U.S. Air Force Senior Airman Brennon Washington, convicted in December of sexually assaulting a minor, has fueled public backlash and protests from Okinawa’s government. In response, the U.S. military imposed tighter liberty restrictions on troops in Japan. Washington has appealed his conviction.
Media members stand outside Naha District Court in Okinawa on June 2, 2025, following the first trial day for a U.S. Marine accused of attempted sexual assault. (Brian McElhiney/Stars and Stripes)
Two other U.S. service members stationed on Okinawa have also been indicted on separate sexual assault charges.
According to the indictment, Clayton choked the woman, unbuttoned her pants and attempted to sexually assault her in the village of Yomitan on May 26, 2024. The woman sustained injuries to her eyes and mouth, prosecutors said.
She testified on June 3 in Naha District Court that she met Clayton on Gate 2 Street in Okinawa city. Clayton followed her into a taxi and then to the home she shared with her boyfriend, a U.S. airman, in Yomitan village, she testified.
Once inside, Clayton found her boyfriend asleep and moved with the woman to the entryway, where he strangled her multiple times, causing her to lose consciousness, she testified. She said he tried to unzip her pants but stopped when she resisted, then masturbated behind her.
Clayton testified June 5 that he was invited to share the taxi and into the home. He said they hugged before he left after she refused to share her contact information.
The court gave credence to the woman’s testimony, with Obata citing photos of bloodspots in her eyes as consistent with the attack she described. Obata also cited the text message she sent to her friend after the incident as supporting evidence.
He dismissed defense attorney Kotaro Ito’s arguments that Clayton could have been framed, saying no evidence supported the claim that her boyfriend committed the crime out of jealousy.
“This court hopes that you will reflect on your actions and not commit the same crime when you return to society, and that you will live a long and peaceful life,” Obata told Clayton.
Ito plans to meet with Clayton next week to determine whether to appeal the decision, he told reporters following the sentencing.
