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USFK in drive to cut crimes
December 13, 2004
The U.S. Forces Korea has been mounting a concerted effort to maintain strong
military readiness and to mitigate any friction with the local community by
toughening measures on drinking and driving and cracking down on offenses
related to prostitution.
In an hour-long interview, the No.3 provost marshal officer of USFK and a
deputy public affairs officer stressed the USFK's commitment to be a good
guest.
The USFK recently revoked driving privileges for staff sergeants and anyone
ranked below in South Korea to help curb drunk driving and its negative
consequence on Korea-U.S. relations.
"Alcohol has tendency to make people just do some dumb things," said Lt. Col.
Chad McRee, chief of operation at the office of the Provost Marshal. He
orchestrates all of USFK's police activities in Korea.
"If it's mishandled, it is bad for everybody, not just in the United States,
but it's bad in Korean culture, and bad for everybody's culture," he said.
McRee said his office has been watching alcohol-related incidents very closely
to make sure they are taking all the necessary approaches they need to take to
mitigate incidents that are predicated by alcohol.
"You are our host. We need to be good visitors here. And so by taking those
steps, we are making a concerted effort to be doing the right thing and teach
the responsibility to soldier and family members," he said.
There are some complaints, though.
McRee said some ask, "I serve in the U.S. Army, why can't I drive a car?" But
generally, soldiers understand by saying that they do not like the limitation
but can live with it, he said.
"This is another adjustment to make our readiness better, and make quality of
life better. A lot of folks think quality of life is directly related to cars,
but it's not," McRee said.
After studying traffic accidents in South Korea, McRee's office concluded that
enlisted service members at the rank of staff sergeant and below had the
highest number of incidents. "Age has something to do with that. And rank is
generally related to age. What we found was the high risk accidents were in
staff sergeant and below," McRee said.
According to USFK statistics, in the 12 months ending in September 2003, there
were a total of 77 cases of military personnel driving under the influence of
alcohol. Of those offenses, 52 were committed by service members in the ranks
of staff sergeants or below who were in the 18-25 age group.
This year, Sgt. Jerry Onken was convicted of three years in prison for killing
a Korean in a hit-and-run car accident in November 2003. He admitted to
drinking and fleeing the accident scene in Osan, south of Seoul. Spc. John
Humphreys was sentenced to 2 1/2 years in prison on Nov. 17 on charges of
stabbing a South Korean citizen in the neck in Sincheon, Seoul, after drinking
heavily.
McRee said the numbers and the trend continue to improve.
The driving restriction along the the raising legal drinking age to 21 has
reduced alcohol-related driving incidents by 50 percent, according to USFK
data.
Overall, traffic accidents fell from 46 in April to 36 in October, said McRee.
These accidents include both privately owned vehicles and military vehicles,
both on and off base.
"Raising the drinking age and changing the driving regulations are part of our
overall commitment to safety. And I'm glad to say we're succeeding," said Col.
William D. Ivey, chief of staff, 8th U.S. Army.
Lt. Col. Deborah Bertrand, USFK deputy public affairs officer, said one of the
reasons for implementing the measures is that public transportation in Korea is
so good that it facilitates easy travel to work and around the country, while
driving environment in Korea is "more challenging than in the United States."
Solidiers convicted of an alcohol-related incident may face dismissal from the
service, jail, fines or other punishment.
On prostitution and human trafficking, McRee said they have been waging a major
campaign against the sex trade. Nearly 400 U.S. servicemen have been punished
this year for related offenses.
"We want to be a solution to the problem, not a catalyst on the problem," McRee
said.
"Punishments would include both administrative and criminal prosecution
numbers. The majority of these were not criminal prosecutions, based on the
violation itself and on the severity of the action," said Bertrand.
"What this number reflects, however, is an aggressive command approach backed
by appropriate consequences for behavior. If 400 were prosecuted, then
aggressive apprehension and enforcement measures are in place whose net pulls
in all levels of violation, from minor to significant," she said.
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