A Marine Corps drill instructor was sentenced to 10 years in prison on Friday after being convicted for physically abusing recruits, including one who took his life following an incident.
The instructor, 34-year-old gunnery Sgt. Joseph Felix, was also sentenced to be dishonorably discharged, forfeit all pay, and a reduction of his rank to private.
Felix was found guilty Thursday by an eight-person jury at Camp Lejeune, N.C., of hazing recruits at the Marine Corps’ Parris Island, S.C., boot camp. The jury, which consisted of five sergeants and three officers, came to conclude that Felix punched, kicked, and choked recruits – specifically targeting three Muslim military volunteers.
According to testimonies, Felix and other drill instructors called Muslim recruits at the camp “terrorists” and “ISIS,” and forced them to tumble in a clothing dryer until they rejected their Islamic faith.
“He wasn’t making Marines. He was breaking Marines,” prosecutor Lt. Col. John Norman told the jury on Wednesday, according to the Associated Press.
Raheel Siddiqui, 20, a Pakistani-American committed suicide by jumping off a stairwell following an incident where prosecutors say Felix yelled at him and slapped him. Siddiqui’s family filed a $100 million wrongful death lawsuit last month against the Marine Corps.
Investigations and firings began taking place after Siddiqui’s death in March 2016.
Lance Cpl. Ameer Bourmeche testified Felix forced him into a clothes dryer and turned it on, demanding he reject his faith. Bourmeche reportedly testified that two drill instructors yelled “Are you still Muslim?” while he was tumbling inside the dryer. After renouncing his faith, the instructor allowed Bourmeche out.
Felix was one of six drill instructors charged with abuse following Siddiqui’s death.
