Military court upholds 10-year prison term for ex-Parris Island drill instructor who abused...

A three-judge panel of the U.S. Navy-Marine Corps Court of Criminal Appeals reviewed the 2017 court-martial of Gunnery Sgt. Joseph A. Felix Jr. and affirmed his conviction and sentence.

In a decision issued last week, the court called Felix a "bully" whose "misconduct impacted an entire generation of Marines."

"The appellant was placed in a position of trust, charged with turning young men into Marines. He was one of their first authority figures — their first example of what a Marine was supposed to be," Senior Judge and Capt. Frank D. Hutchison wrote for the court.

"Instead of providing a positive example and conducting meaningful training, he taught his recruits, by his example, that rule-breaking was commonplace and that violence against fellow Marines was not only acceptable, but required to instill discipline. Not only did he fail to correct or report his subordinates' bad behavior, he encouraged it and participated in worse and more pervasive behavior."

A military jury at Camp Lejeune, North Carolina, convicted Felix in November 2017 on three counts of recruit "maltreatment" — abusive, unwarranted or unjustified treatment or that which causes physical or mental suffering.

They also found Felix guilty of eight of nine counts of violating general orders by making physical contact with recruits, including striking and choking them; ordering excessive, unauthorized "incentive training" or punitive exercises.