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Marine testifies he didn't rape girl

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American apologizes for abduction on Okinawa

December 11, 1995
Web posted at: 10:00 a.m. EST (1500 GMT)

From Correspondent May Lee

NAHA, Japan (CNN) -- A U.S. Marine tearfully apologized in an Okinawa court on Monday for his role in a rape case that has shaken U.S.-Japan defense ties. But Pfc. Rodrico Harp insisted he did not rape the schoolgirl victim. Harp, 21, said he was pressed by another accused serviceman into taking part in the abduction of the 12-year-old girl and confessed to rape in an earlier statement to U.S. officials only because he thought he would get a lighter sentence.

Lt. Gen. Richard Myers, commander of U.S. forces in Japan, denies confessions were coerced. (94K AIFF sound or 94K WAV sound)



Rodrico Harp


"I was forced into it, but I know I did it. I know I must be punished."

-- Testimony from U.S. Marine Rodrico Harp



"I'm sorry about what I've done," Harp said, choking back tears as he spoke of the September 4 attack on the Okinawan schoolgirl. "I'm sorry for the outrage to your country. I'm sorry for the pain I put the little girl through. ... I was forced into it, but I know I did it. I know I must be punished."

headlines

The case also has brought out accusations of mistreatment and unfair legal practices in Japan. American attorney Michael Griffith, representing the families of Harp and fellow Marine Pfc. Kendrick Ledet, 20, lashed out at the Okinawan government Monday (170K AIFF sound or 170K WAV sound) for an ad it placed in the New York Times last month. The full-page ad cites the rape as among several problems in Okinawa caused by the U.S. military presence on Japan's southernmost island.



newspaper ad

"This ad was a 'thoughtless act'."

-- Attorney Michael Griffith




the letter

In a handwritten letter to the governor of Okinawa, Griffith called the ad a "thoughtless act " and accused the governor of poisoning the integrity of the judicial process. Because of that, Griffith is demanding that the trial be moved from Okinawa. But the Japanese attorneys representing the three servicemen do not support a change of venue. Harp, Ledet and U.S. Navy Seaman Marcus Gill, 22, are accused of abducting and raping the girl in a case that has sparked widespread anger in Okinawa and set off demands for the withdrawal of U.S. forces from Japan's southernmost island.

'I was scared'

At the opening of the trial last month, Gill pleaded guilty to a charge of rape. Harp and Ledet admitted abducting the girl but pleaded not guilty to rape. Harp, under questioning on Monday by his defense lawyer, Mitsunobu Matsunaga, said that while he was in the custody of U.S. military legal authorities he signed a six-page confession admitting full involvement in the rape because he was scared. "I was scared and didn't know what to do, but I wanted to tell what happened, so I went on to sign the statement," Harp said. He said he signed a confession without reading it in detail because U.S. military officials told him that showing repentance would prompt the Japanese court to give him a lighter sentence.

Gill portrayed as ringleader

in court

Harp gave accounts of the incident that painted Gill as the ringleader and Ledet and himself as unwilling accomplices. Harp said that in the middle of the assault, "Ledet told me: 'Do not rape her. She's just a little girl. Just get in the car and keep Gill from jumping on her.'" Listening to the testimony of Harp, the only one of the accused to take the stand on Monday, Gill shook his head angrily and repeatedly pressed his face into his hands. The two men did not make eye contact in the courtroom.

At the end of the two-hour court session, the three servicemen were led separately -- handcuffed and with a rope around their waists -- out of the court. Court officials said the next session will be on Thursday, followed by further sessions on December 26 and December 27.

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Copyright 1995 Cable News Network Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed. Reuters news service contributed to this report.



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