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In June 2001, a woman (1) claimed to have been surrounded by several "foreign looking" men, including an Air Force Tech Sergeant named Timothy Woodland. According to the victim, Woodland forced her on top of the hood of a car and proceeded to sexually assault her as unidentified bystanders watched.(2)

According to news reports, some other American soldiers happened upon this scene, one or more of whom attempted to intervene. At this point in time, a car marked with "Y" license plates ("Y" and "A" license plates are reserved for U.S. soldiers in Japan) drove up, which Woodland allegedly jumped into and then fled the scene.

After beginning their criminal investigation, the Okinawan authorities concluded that Woodland was their primary suspect. They had conducted several interviews with him before requesting that he be transferred to their custody, pending his trial. This request was mulled over by Pentagon for nearly a full week before finally obliging their request. The reasons for the prolonged delay of four days included the "concerns" that Woodland’s rights would not be respected by the Okinawan authorities or the Japanese judicial system. Some news sources had suggested that the Fourth of July holiday might have also had something to do with the delay.

To us in the nmb collective, the delay is a grave violation of human rights either way. The Pentagon felt the need to preserve Woodland’s Constitutional rights so strongly that a woman’s right to have her claim of rape fully investigated without obstruction was overlooked. Even as millions of people barbecued and picnicked in celebration of the American Independence Day and watched fireworks explode, a survivor of rape waited in vain to hear the word that her attacker had been apprehended and charged. She herself was overlooked, and her rights to equal proctection under the law from such a horrendous violation were dismissed. If the Pentagon had gone to such great lengths to protect the victim's rights, as they had to protect Woodland's right to counsel and speedy trial, they would not have hesitated at a such a simple act because of a Holiday.

Annette Eddie-Callagain, one of Woodland’s defense attorneys, stated that the sexual encounter was consensual. This, despite the fact that, according to Okinawan authorities, there was "no question" that the woman was raped. Woodland was found guilty by the court and received a sentence of 32 months.

Notes:

(1) The initial reports on mainstream newswires reported that this woman was Okinawan. She was actually one of the many mainlander Japanese women who travel to Okinawa for “arubaito” (part-time/temporary work, like summer jobs) in the bustling tourist industry that is so predominant in the balmy, tropical Okinawa prefecture. This is not a suggestion that her Japanese ethnicity makes such a significant difference in this case; rather, this footnote is simply to retract and correct the initial reports on this website. In that vein, the initial reports from mainstream media were also muddled as to how Woodland fled the scene, or the order of events in which other bystanders were involved.   back to top

(2) These bystanders were later identified as friends of Woodland, one of whom later testified in his defense at the trial that he thought Woodland was fighting with the intervening soldier OVER having sex with the victim. The witness also testified that he thought the victim was saying "No" to stop them from fighting over her. The other witness stated that he thought her moans were of pleasure. Neither of these men was charged as accomplices to the rape.   back to top