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Court-martial in alleged rape set for Friday

OCEANSIDE, Calif. — The general court-martial of a staff sergeant accused of raping a teenage girl in Okinawa is scheduled to begin Friday, Marine officials said Tuesday.

Staff Sgt. Tyrone L. Hadnott, 38, has been charged under the Uniform Code of Military Justice with the rape of a child under age 16, abusive sexual contact with a child under age 16, making a false official statement, adultery and kidnapping.

Authorities have accused Hadnott of assaulting a 14-year-old girl Feb. 10. If convicted of all the charges, he faces a maximum sentence of life imprisonment without parole, forfeiture of all pay and allowances and a dishonorable discharge. He is a radio chief with Communications Company, Headquarters Battalion, 3rd Marine Division, at Camp Courtney, Okinawa.

Hadnott has denied he raped the girl. The division commander, Maj. Gen. Robert B. Neller, last month levied charges and referred the case to trial.

The staff sergeant was arrested by Japanese authorities, but was taken into military custody after local prosecutors dropped the charges when the teenager withdrew her complaint.

The alleged incident has incensed some local opposition to the U.S. military presence on Okinawa, a southern island with the largest concentration of U.S. military forces in Japan.