Teen sons of 2 Marines suspected in shoplift

[unhappycamper]

Teen sons of 2 Marines suspected in shoplift
Kyodo News Service
Posted : Wednesday Apr 16, 2008 7:11:01 EDT

NAHA, Japan — U.S. military police have taken into custody two American boys suspected of shoplifting in Okinawa and rejected an initial request by Japanese police to question them, Japanese police sources said Tuesday.

The refusal to allow the Japanese police to question the boys after they were apprehended Sunday might run counter to the Japan-U.S. Status of Forces Agreement, which governs the use of areas and facilities in Japan by U.S. forces.

The boys are the 16-year-old and 17-year-old sons of two Marines stationed in Okinawa.

~snip~

The increasing number of crimes by U.S. military personnel continues to spark an uproar in Okinawa, where much of the U.S. military presence in Japan is based.

This is the second incident in Japan this month involving the children of U.S. troops. The 16-year-old son of a U.S. airman and the 15-year-old son of a U.S. Marine were arrested April 4 on suspicion of assaulting a taxi driver in Okinawa.

Rest of aticle at: http://www.marinecorpstimes.com/news/2008/04/kyo_shoplift_041508/

[TooBigaTent]

1. America - making friends all over the world. When will the US realize that we must

subject our military to local laws? Protecting our killers (and their kids) from the consequences of their actions may be the way of the Bush administration, but it does us no good.

[rakeeb]

3. The Status of Forces Agreement between the U.S. and Japan

isn't a Bush thing, it is a Gen MacArthur/ SecState Herter thing dating back to 1960...

but hey, if it was your kid I have no doubt that you would forego that SOFA and hand him over to the Japanese to serve that 18 month sentence in a prison where no one speaks english, right?

[Crowman1979]

2. I think we need to end having military units permanently stationed in foreign countries.

With the mobile capabilities we have now, it's just hypocritical to have all of these permanent bases for our country and deny foreign nations permanent bases here. If anything we should just share foreign bases for logistical purposes only, on a temporary basis, with the consent of that nation's government.

[forever_frost]

4. Other choice...

Or another answer would be STOP LETTING DAMNED KIDS GO OVERSEAS WITH THE SERVICE MEMBER. I mean, if I can make it a year in Korea or Iraq or Kuwait without my family, then so can they.