By Recently the USFK Commanding General Walter Sharp has ordered a mandatory weekend training period for all USFK servicemembers due to an increase in off post incidents after he had eased USFK’s curfew restrictions in August 2008. In order to determine just how much of an increase in off post crime was occuring since the lifting of the curfew, I decided to go through the ROK criminal prosecution results from September 2008 – March 2009 to determine where the criminal increases were coming from.
ROK Criminal Prosecutions:
In total during this seven month period USFK had 54 servicemembers convicted of crimes. This comes out to 7.7 crimes committed per month. In all of 2008 there was 66 crimes committed that came out to a total of 5.5 crimes per month. 2007 has an even better average with only 4 crimes per month. So clearly there has been an increase in crimes off post.
Now lets take a look at the crimes being committed. Here is a list of the crimes the 54 people were convicted of:
USFK Servicemember ROK Convictions
- traffic violation – 5
- bodily injury – 12
- DUI – 15
- Assault – 3
- indecent assault – 1
- narcotics – 3
- hit & run – 1
- rape – 1
- robbery – 1
- violent act – 5
- fraud – 1
- larceny – 3
- trespassing – 2
- obstruction – 1
- Dest. of Priv. Prop. – 2
As you can see the most off post incidents since the curfew was lifted was for DUI’s with 15 convictions. This is a huge increase compared to all of 2008 with only 13 convictions. When the curfew was lifted in August 2008 there was also a new driving policy implemented that allowed more servicemembers to drive. When this policy was announced I was concerned then about the policy rise in DUI’s this could bring and sure it enough it has happened. Fortunately none of these DUI’s has led to a fatal accident, but I would hope this DUI trend is something the USFK leadership is looking at.
Bodily Injury is the next highest form of crime with 12 convictions. It is important to recognize that bodily injury convictions can come from traffic accidents as well as fights because bodily injury simply means the person was bruised or scraped by your actions. The ROK criminal prosecution results do not specify what caused the bodily injury convictions so to say they are all from fights in the ville is impossible to determine. Nevertheless this is still a high number because in all of 2008 there was 12 bodily injury convictions.
Another category that has increased are convictions for violent acts which currently five servicemembers have been convicted of. In all of 2008 there was only 4 people convicted of this crime. So just these three categories have created a sharp increase while the other categories of crime are very similar to 2008’s ratio if you compare them.
Comparing Major Crimes
Now let’s take a look at major crimes because these are the ones that USFK should be most concerned with.
The overall rate of off post crime may be up in USFK, the most important stat of major crime is down from 2007. The Korean National Policy Agency considers Murder, Burgulary, Rape, Larceny, & Assault as major crimes when compiling Korean crime statistics. Here is how USFK servicemembers totaled up in this important statistic over the last seven months:
USFK Major Crime Convictions
- Murder – 0
- Burgulary – 1
- Rape – 1
- Theft – 4
- Assault – 4
- Total – 10
In 2008 the was a total of 15 major crimes which comes out to a per month average of 1.25 crimes per month. The average number of major crimes for the past seven months after the lifting of the curfew is 1.42 crimes a month, which is a very slight increse, but overall quite low.
Conclusion
So in conclusion it is clear there has been an increase in off post crimes especially with DUI’s and bodily injury convictions. Convictions for major crimes has fortunately remained low. However, the recent Osan stabbing incident hasn’t been included in these statistics yet since it hasn’t been tried. The publicity of this case definitely had to have an effect on the decision of General Sharp to possibly relook the curfew decision.
It is impossible to know if any of these crimes could have been prevented if the curfew was unchanged since the ROK criminal prosecution results do not give specific times when they incidents happened. I think it is a safe assumption that the increase in driving infractions such as DUI’s could have been lower if the new driving policy wasn’t implemented.
However, as I have stated before incidents are going to happen and when you consider you added two more hours at night for drunk people to commit more incidents and put more people on the roads, why be surprised in the statistical rise? If the command doesn’t have the fortitude to stick with the decisions then maybe they should have remained unchanged in the first place.
10:03 am on April 13th, 2009 1
These stats further embolden the notion that one or two incidents cause a huge effect around the peninsula.
I would like to know what the opposite end of the spectrum is. How many troops serve in Korea each year that don’t commit any crimes? It’s got to be 99.8 or 99.9 percent. Nobody gets any credit for that.
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11:41 am on April 13th, 2009 2
Hmmm…
I was totally diggin’ your write-up until I came across:
Murder – 0
I suspected Captain Gray was guilty of only illegally dumping trash. Nice to see others think so.
Despite your sincere effort and excellent post, it is kinda meaningless from a scientific-ie standpoint… although it hardly matters because USFK will cherrypick their numbers to draw their pre-determined conclusions.
There are many other factors which affect the interpretation.
Korean convictions, court martials and Article 15s all need to be considered.
There could be an attitude change. It could range from “We will hammer anybody who screws up” to “We had better cover for all these idiots before the curfew gets reverted.”
Before committing suicide, those recruters who forged documents and wavered crackheads could have sent a real batch of winners to Korea in the last few months.
And, as you mentioned, the TIME these acts were comitted is the most important statistic. Anything that happened before 1am has little relation to curfew.
It also seems like DUI is a real trend-setter. What the hell. DUI is about the easiest thing to avoid. Hired drivers (Dae-ri-oon-jahn) are so cheap that only an idiot would drive drunk… and taxis are so cheap you can afford to taxi home and back the next day to pick up your car.
If I have even a sip of alcohol, I do not drive. Period. Some consider this rule to be excessive… but I don’t ever have to wonder if I have had too much to drink… especially if my judgement has been impared because I have had too much to drink.
In the end, most of the guys who get in trouble can be seen a mile away… everybody knows they are going to get in trouble months before they actually do.
Curfews and restrictions are fine and dandy but are no substitute for strong and aware leadership that actually cares… and is equally capible of guiding as well as punishing.
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1:39 pm on April 13th, 2009 3
I don’t understand the “love affair” with the curfew. These facts are meaningless, if the time frame is unknown. Since the time frame is unknown, this article has no meaning what so ever.
During the 80s and 90s we had no curfew in area III. Most drunks and losers are passed out soon enough.
As long as your on time for PT formation. If I remember correctly, it is called Discipline.
I had no curfew at Hood, or Campbell, or Iraq, or Bosnia. I didn’t have one in Korea from 88-92, 95-97.
I do not understnad the reason/desire for treating our soldiers in Korea like children. If some of them are children (some always are) then burn um under UCMJ.
For the rest, it is called Leadership. Instruct their young butts. A lost art for sure. Well I remember the “pay-day weekend talks from the CO”. Who usually took an active role by being in the ville himself/herself. Make the CO earn his check like they used too.
DUI is too easy to fix: lost license. The bus still runs, I assume.
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4:09 pm on April 13th, 2009 4
I think the vast majority of the data USFK looks at doesn’t show up in Courts Martials or ROK convictions. It’s contained in things like Article 15s. We don’t see that but we know it contains the most common offenses, like curfew violations.
Ironically, one of the biggest issues with the curfew is that it creates this crime category in itself.
Another ‘crime’ that USFK has created was when they equated bar fining with prostitution. It reminded me of the military fraternization crack downs in the ’90s. If an enlisted was married to an officer there was a good bet there was some fraternization. How they got from there to here, no one could say for sure, but it generated an environment of rumour and suspicion. How does the GI and his bar girlfriend get to spend so much quality time together to make the commitment to each other?
Anyway, even though bar fining has been equated to prostitution and pandering for prostitution had been elevated to a felony a few years ago, we are told it is still only punished by Article 15.
So, it’s the article 15 data that will tell us what USFK is really concerned about.
But as suggested, what does a curfew have to do with any of it? Other than the curfew violations themselves, what does a curfew do? And in that case, the curfew is the source of the offence, it doesn’t prevent it.
Here’s a thought. What if the curfew is actually part of the problem. I have wondered about that for several years now. This is just from personal observation, but I think the police blotter records could support or refute it. It appeared to me that guys AND girls seemed to engage in the more aberrant behaviour in the last hour of two before curfew. It didn’t matter when the curfew was; 3 AM, 1 AM, 10 PM. Maybe it’s the pressure/need to beat-the-clock. People may have been drinking at pace for most of the evening, but they are doing their most intense drinking in that last hour. Add to that whatever frustrations they may have pent up from an evening of suggestive sexual encounters and nothing to show for it as the witching approached. I can see how that may lead to incidents.
So, if the problem is assaults; physical and sexual, is the curfew a solution or part of the problem.
Just a thought …
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6:04 pm on April 13th, 2009 5
What DUIs I know of were not after a night of drinking, but on the way to work in the morning. They would get in a fender bender and you could smell the booze fumes from the night before. When given the breath test they would turn up with enough alcohol still in their system to be charged with DUI. I heard most DUIs are civilians. Having been in Korea for a long time it seems to me they did not have these problems when there was no curfew and they had Korean bar girls who had their own place of residence. If you read the curfew rule, it says you can be out after curfew if you are attending a MWR event on the military installation. You can get drunk after curfew on base, but not downtown.
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6:34 pm on April 13th, 2009 6
I did not include court martial results in this because you cannot tell if the offense was related to an incident off post or not. That is why I only analyzed ROK criminal prosecutions. The Lea Gray murder was not a ROK criminal prosecution and was a crime committed in the guy’s on post apartment. He was tried in a US court martial.
The provost martial office has access to all the incidents that happened with times after curfew. The mandatory training would not be happening if only curfew violations were happening. From what I am hearing there has been an increase in minor criminal incidents in the ville that is driving the relook at the policy. Fortunately major incidents like rape have not increased.
I think people also need to realize the pressure USFK is under to prevent incidents due to the political repercussions. Back in the 80’s and 90’s you could get away with more stuff in regards to GI crime, not any more today. GI’s involved in the most minor of incidents can make local news reports. The last really major crime was the grandma rape case that received huge play in the Korean media.
Could you imagine what the political repercussions would be if a USFK drunk driver ran over two kids walking across the street? That is why I have been hot on this DUI issue.
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7:49 pm on April 13th, 2009 7
Generally speaking, AGE has much to do with DUIs. A 30 yo, reguardless of rank, is going to be less likely to drink and drive, than say a 20 yo. If DUI is the focus, how many in korea really need a POV? I think not many.
If ya really want to see some article 15 action, check out the NCO clubs on any base, (stanley, humphreys) AFTER curfew. The same number of people that were located in ten plus bars, are now funneled into ONE. Oh, and the number of females have been decreased hugely.
Fights that would not have happened, now do. But what the hell, it’s on base and we are only beating on our own personel. No nasty news reports to worry about there. That IS the number one concern. Not the Soldiers.
No curfew at Hood, or Campbell, or Iraq. What makes korea different?
American Soldiers are at all locations. Hell the same Soldiers!
They have cars and can drink at hood and campbell. No curfew.
They leave their family and are ordered to korea, and get slapped with a curfew?
Something is wrong in korea, and it isn’t the Soldiers.
Glad I was there in the 80s and 90s. It was fun and a Soldier could stand or fall as he chose. Not be treated as a problem waiting for a location. and oh please, let the location be the NCO club on base. PLEASE!
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8:05 pm on April 13th, 2009 8
Taking care of Soldiers and providing Leadership DOES NOT go hand in hand with a curfew. The curfew only takes care of the “political repercussions”. That seems to be the only concern.
Pisses me off. So glad I’m retired with those good memories of korea and 8th army.
Not what it has become.
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9:05 pm on April 13th, 2009 9
I’m not a soldier and never was.
I don’t like the idea of curfews and non-driving privileges for people whose basic job description is to be prepared to fight and die for Korea at a moment’s notice — unless the curfew or other restrictions are directly related to the force readiness that is needed.
However, with the DUIs – I can agree with broad restrictions being applied and loosened depending on troop behavior – meaning – having a policy that is a privilege that can be revoked in mass if too many DUIs start to happen.
Why? Because driving in Korea is not a necessity at all.
Unlike in the States, you have cheap public transportation and other options everywhere in Korea. Even small towns get taxi traffic. You don’t need your own car in Korea at all – and given how Korean drivers drive, I was always happy I didn’t have to.
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10:00 pm on April 13th, 2009 10
I didn’t go into the DUI reports in detail, but I seem to recall almost all were E-6 and above; SFC, WO, CPO. The same people who were trusted to drive responsibly before.
I think on the last group there was a SPC driving without a license and that’s part of the point. The driving privilege change didn’t put a lot more junior enlisted free wheeling on the roads. They still don’t automatically have permission to drive unless they can show a need; i.e. they are command sponsored, living off base with family. Then not likely to be out partying all night and attempting to drive home.
So for the most part, I don’t see the junior enlisted as a serious part of the problem.
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April 14th, 2009 at 6:01 am
Yes you are right that DUI’s are a majority officer and senior enlisted problem. However, remember that the new driving policy allows more of them to drive. Also you have the increase in traffic violations as well which is where you see many of the junior enlisted getting ticketed.
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8:53 am on April 14th, 2009 11
Now wait a minute. Junior enlisted can DRIVE? Since when? Junior enlisted is E-4 and below. Well, I can see THAT being a problem.
It seems we are all in agreement then. The curfew or lack of a curfew is not the problem.
The driving policy IS the problem. The two are not the same. So stop the curfew, and fix the driving policy.
See how easy that was.
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1:01 am on April 15th, 2009 12
Umm no and more no (to the driving change). The policy did not give cars to juniors. To OWN a POV you still need the exception to policy approved from the first O-6 in the chain of command. But to get the license you only need the first O-5 to approve your request (big difference between a request and a ETP). Basically you can rent a POV, or a senior can lend you theirs, but you can’t register your own. The policy also clarified a “grey area” category of soldiers E6 and under who were married but not command sponsored. They lived off post and were entitled too most of the other benefits of being married in the military, but unless your command was cool, you had to jump through hoops to get your ETP approved.
Now onto the curfew and what I have against it. For five years I was a soldier in the ROK, eventually ETSing as a SSG (and now a dirty nasty evil greedy untrustworthy contractor). This wasn’t my first duty station, this isn’t the only place in the world the military has bases. Japan, Germany, Italy, Belgium all have military bases. NONE has a “curfew”. There is nothing inherently different from this place then any other. You want up, do PT, get showered/clean, goto work/duty/training, then go home. Go out with friends on weekends, usually drinking and other things that YOUNG people across the world do. The ONLY difference is here, the media is your enemy and always looking for a way to sensationalize things, not to mention the former ROK president was very anti-American.
Most of the time I went out “down range” it wasn’t with fellow soldiers, but the KATUSA’s or my Korean friends. And I will tell you right now, Korean males from the age of 20 to 30 drink like college kids, and drink more then soldiers. They get into fights more then soldiers, they “grab ass” with the K-gals more then soldiers do. The only difference is their not as aggressive towards each other.
This is why I think the curfew is straight bull. Its a control measure, its there to appease the political powers that be and to get soldiers away from Koreans during the hours their most likely to get in trouble. Its segregation, keeping young American citizens from young Korean citizens during the hours where the least amount of inhibitions are present. And its only used here to prevent the media from fueling things and making embarrassing stories.
We have DUI’s in the rest of the world, we have fights, rapes, murder, assaults, and everything else under the sun. We deal with it elsewhere using the judicial system and UCMJ. That should apply here, and be damned if the media makes a hoopla. That is a discussion from the US Government to the Korean Government saying “get your media to lay off or we’re out of here, we will not be treated this way”. And trust me it would stop ASAP.
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