On December 19, 2002, Major Brown was wrongfully accused and subsequently indicted on assault charges and imprisoned in Okinawa, Japan.  Since that day, he has spent 149 days in solitary confinement, been exonerated  in court by the supposed accuser, and he and his family have been forced to spend hundreds of thousands of dollars on his defense.  Yet, the trial has not ended, Okinawan officials have not relinquished their control over him, the U.S. Government continues to ignore his plight, and Major Brown's future is still at stake.  He has become a political pawn for corrupt Okinawan officials.  His family has established this website in the hopes of getting the American people, the White House and Congress involved in securing the release of this American Patriot.

We call on the American Government and The U.S. Ambassador to Japan, Mr. Howard Baker, to do everything they can to assist in gaining Major Brown's exoneration and freedom.

We have been working hard to gain Major Brown’s freedom. If your conscience dictates justice, then please read this site to learn of our efforts. You will find information on Major Brown's Legal Defense Fund, updates on his case and much more, including information on how you can help. Please send your comments to ContactUs@MajorBrown.org. Thank you.

Free Major Brown Website

I decided that it would be educational to new readers to see why we are screaming so much about this case and why we believe that it is way past time for the U.S. Government to intervene and say "Enough is Enough".  Since this is a last minute page, I've done it from memory.  So, the dates may be a little off.  But, the facts are right.

November 2, 2002 - Victoria Nakamine, the alleged accuser, shows up at the main gate of Camp Courtney and tells the MPs on duty that she wants to report a "possible rape".  SSgt. Bergen, a Marine with years of police experience and experience with several rape cases, is one of the MPs on duty.  In his sworn statement, he testifies that Nakamine's emotional state is one of anger, not trauma.  He states that she is not in the emotional state that he associates with rape/trauma victims.  He further testifies that her clothes and appearance are neat, her hair is fixed and not in disarray and, most importantly, she is the same woman that he saw a short time earlier at the Officer's club with Richard DeWald (her manager).  This testimony directly contradicted the criminal complaint that was filed.  Major Brown's version has very little time elapsing from accepting the ride to exiting the vehicle.  His version exactly matches the testimony given by SSgt. Bergen.  We now know that Nakamine did not write the criminal complaint, the police and the prosecutor did.  Richard DeWald corroborates her testimony, making his testimony the second to conflict with Officers' statements and MP statements.  He "clams up" shortly after giving his police statement and refuses to talk to the defense team. Without any explanation, SSgt. Bergen's testimony is not allowed by the court.  In fact, the Okinawan police had interviewed him also and they destroyed the statement that he gave them.

November 2, 2002 - After laughing and joking with the Okinawan Police at the main gate (the U.S. MPs summoned them since the alleged crime occurred off-base), Nakamine is taken into custody for examination and questioning.  During questioning, Nakamine says she "may have exaggerated" a bit because she was angry.  She is no longer interested in filing a report.  However, the police do not release her.  Instead, they keep her there, expose her to humiliating photographs and medical exams even though, by this time, she is insisting that nothing happened.  One of the photographs taken is submitted into evidence later and shows dark bruises on Nakamine.  A doctor's examination the next day reveals no bruises.  The defense team demands to see the original negatives of the photograph showing bruising, knowing that the photograph was faked.  The prosecutor says that the negatives were destroyed since they were no longer needed.  By the time the police release Nakamine, she has been awake for over 36 hours.

November 3, 2002 - Brown calls the O'club to speak to Nakamine and apologize for his harsh words and he offers to replace the cell phone.  DeWald talks to him and says not to worry about it.  "It's no big deal."

November 4, 2002 - The police meet with Mr. Miyara, the President of Plenty Staff, Mr. Kawamitsu, the legal counsel for Plenty Staff, and the Prosecutor.  Nakamine works for Plenty Staff.  Nakamine testifies that, shortly after this meeting, she receives a large sum of money from Kawamitsu as payment for her continued cooperation.

November 7, 2002 - Major Brown learns that the Okinawan police are investigating a complaint from November 2nd and he immediately steps forward and offers to cooperate and help resolve the misunderstanding.  He has no idea, at this point, how serious the charges are that have been made against him.  From this point forward, Major Brown cooperates fully, submitting to hours of interrogation without legal counsel (legal counsel is not a right enjoyed in Japan), allowing his office to be searched and his personal property seized.  At one point, he receives a call from the Okinawan police. They ask if his wife is home because they'd like to talk to her.  They proceed to set an appointment to "drop by" and talk to her.  At the appointed time, over 30 police officers show up at the house with no warrant, and proceed to go over everything with a fine-toothed comb.  Later, they actually go through a re-enactment of the incident, as Major Brown reported it. Brown fully cooperates.  After the re-enactment, the police inform Major Brown that the original criminal complaint does not match the facts and that his version matches.  They believe him to be innocent of any wrongdoing.

December 3, 2002 - as the issue appears about to be resolved, a "mysterious" leak gets out on the newswire that a warrant is issued for Major Brown's arrest.  Later that day, a warrant is actually issued.  It is later learned that the "mysterious" leak came from the Japanese Ministry of Justice  In fact, they freely admitted it.  Numerous Okinawan officials step up to the microphone to decry this "horrible crime" and to state how terrible it is that the "U.S. cannot control these terrible animals".  Innocent Until Proven Guilty is another concept that does not exist in the Japanese Criminal Justice system.  While it's written down, it's not practiced.  I'd like to say that this only applies to foreigners.  Unfortunately, all people, including Japanese people, are subjected to the Guilty Until Proven Innocent standard.  However, the sensationalism is indeed reserved just for Americans and this case proves no exception.

December 2002 - Major Brown continues to fully cooperate with the police.  He even agrees to let his legal counsel, appointed by the Marine SJA, negotiate Jidan (a sorry payment) with the alleged accuser.  His legal counsel informs him that since he will not admit guilt, the accuser refuses to negotiate.  Unbeknownst to Major Brown at the time, the alleged accuser is more than willing to receive even more money and is anxiously awaiting Major Brown's offer.  However, Mr. Kawamitsu is telling her that Major Brown is refusing to offer Jidan.  Jidan, of course, never occurs.  Major Brown's lawyer resigns because he says that it would be a conflict of interest to continue to represent Major Brown after representing him during Jidan.  He is apparently the only lawyer in Japan to believe this because every other lawyer in Japan that we interviewed (and we interviewed a lot of them) stated that lawyers always represent their clients from beginning to end, including during Jidan.  It is later learned that Major Brown's lawyer and Kawamitsu and Major Brown's second lawyer are all good friends and are all active members of various Anti-American Groups.  In addition, all three are on the SJA list of "recommended" lawyers to represent U.S. servicemen accused of crimes.  It has been common practice for years for the SJA to recommend lawyers who are active members of Anti-American groups.  No research is done on the lawyers except to train them on the SOFA and make sure they speak English.

December 16, 2002 - An indictment is handed down.  Major Brown is taken into custody and put into solitary confinement.  By this time Major Brown's second lawyer, another one recommended by the SJA, is on board.  He claims to be very sincere in defending Major Brown "even though Major Brown is claiming to be innocent", as if this were something that was unheard of in Japan.  As it turns out, it is pretty unheard of in Japan.  Individuals in Japan who are accused of a crime are subjected to 23 days of unending interrogation without the presence of legal counsel.  Actually, it's 23 days or until you confess, whichever comes first.  This practice, known as Dayo Kangoku, has been protested by the U.N., Amnesty International, and many other watchdog groups for years.  It also explains Japan's 95% conviction rate.  And, unless I forget to mention it later, they also have a 100% conviction rate against American servicemen.  That's right, there has never been a case in Japan where a U.S. serviceman has been arrested and later found to be innocent.  This was not hard to research because any alleged crime committed by a U.S. serviceman that is more serious than spitting on a sidewalk is always written up by the local newspaper.  Alleged felonies by U.S. servicemen are always front page news.  In contrast, when the wife of an American serviceman was publicly raped by the son of a prominent member of the Yakuza clan, a small story appeared several pages back in the paper.  It was reported on again when the victim supposedly forgave the rapist.  He was never arrested or questioned, much less indicted and convicted, even though he came forward to "apologize for the incident".  As a side note, rape is not just rape in Japan.  The standards used in Japanese courts classify rapes in several categories: rape by a Japanese National (serious), rape by a Foreign National (more serious), rape by an American (very serious), rape by a black American (most serious).  I'm sorry, but if this happened to a woman I know, the penalty would be most severe, regardless of the perpetrator's nationality.

Mid-January 2002 - after visiting Major Brown in solitary confinement only once, failing to have translated the 500 page police file against Major Brown, yelling at Major Brown's wife for having the audacity (said sarcastically) to show up at his office without an appointment, Major Brown's second lawyer is fired and the family decides to hire their own attorney instead of taking a chance on a third "recommendation" from the SJA.  The second lawyer's only actions during his time on board were to encourage Major Brown to plead guilty and to file for bail.

Mid-January 2002 - Major Brown's third lawyer, Mr. Takaesu, learns that Major Brown's second lawyer did not follow proper procedure for filing bail and that's why it was repeatedly denied.  Mr. Takaesu follows proper procedure but his filing also gets denied.  It isn't until the alleged accuser takes the stand and testifies that she did not write the original complaint that Major Brown finally gets bail, 149 days after being put into solitary confinement.

November - December 2002 - There were at least two payoffs to Nakamine from Plenty Staff.  There is a possible third payoff of $13,500 that occurred right before Nakamine's final day of testimony.  We have been unable to confirm that the payoff came from Plenty Staff because we are not allowed to subpoena their bank records or the records of the prosecutor and we have had no contact with the alleged victim.  In an odd twist, the prosecutor actually brought up the fact that Nakamine had received a payment and even had the audacity to insinuate that someone from the defense side had paid her.  You can take my word for it:  if we knew we could pay her to tell the truth, we would not have spent over $250,000 on defense lawyers, investigators, special consultants, and expert witnesses.  But, of course, we have not seen the prosecutor say anything yet that makes sense.

March 2003 - Major Brown's "trial" starts.  On the morning of the first trial day, the papers are littered with stories of DNA evidence that supposedly shows that Major Brown's DNA was found on the "victim's" upper torso.  The defense, of course, is shocked by this since the Discovery process is also a privilege not enjoyed in the Japanese judicial process.  The defense lawyer immediately goes to the prosecution to get a copy of the DNA report, only to be told that there is no DNA evidence.  Two months later, a DNA report is produced.  A cursory review by a DNA expert hired by the defense proves that the report is bogus and provides no conclusive DNA evidence of any kind.  Throughout this entire episode, Major Brown maintains that it is not possible for his DNA to be on the alleged "victim".  The prosecutor, tells the court that the DNA evidence was destroyed because it was no longer needed, thus preventing the defense from verifying any "conclusions" drawn.  No DNA evidence is ever entered in court.  It turns out that the DNA issue was nothing more than a false propaganda campaign designed to sway as many opinions as possible before the trial began.

May 2003 - Major Brown is released on bail after 149 days in solitary confinement.  He reports that he was treated well during his confinement.  However, he was forced to sleep on floor mats at night and spend his days sitting on a hard straight-backed chair.  As a result, he sustains irreparable damage to his already broken back.

From May through October, not a single piece of evidence or testimony is presented by anyone to show that an assault actually took place, much less anything to substantiate such an assault.  The end result of almost a year's worth of investigation, trial, testimony and evidence is one 8 page criminal complaint that turns out to be written by the prosecutor and the police.  Every other item points toward Major Brown's innocence and toward a more corrupt system than anyone thought imaginable.  Here are just a few of the highlights:

• The alleged accuser testifies to Major Brown's innocence.

• The alleged accuser testifies to having received payoffs from Plenty Staff.

• The alleged accuser testifies to having been coerced and threatened by the police.

• Testimony reveals that the alleged accuser cannot even read Japanese, the language used to write the criminal complaint.

• Testimony reveals that the alleged accuser does not even understand many of the words used in the criminal complaint.  Japanese is not her native language.  The alleged accuser is Filipino and speaks more English that Japanese.

• Expert witnesses prove that the alleged accuser's signature stamp was forged in order to bring in a witness (Mr. Kawamitsu) who testified about the alleged accuser's "intent" to punish Major Brown.

• Repeated pleas by the defense to investigate prosecutorial misconduct are turned down.  Once the forgery is discovered and prosecutorial misconduct is proven, it is ignored.

• All testimony from American witnesses is thrown out.

• The defense team releases medical records showing metal rods and braces in Major Brown's back that make it impossible for him to perform the acts in the criminal complaint that he is accused of performing.  This evidence is ignored.

• Timelines generated from testimony of all witnesses exactly matches Major Brown's version of events.  The alleged accuser concurs.  Only the criminal complaint and the testimony of Mr. DeWald (which matches the criminal complaint) do not fit into the timeline.  The sources for the timeline included security logs, police statements, and statements from Officers and other witnesses from the night in question.  Mr. DeWald's statement is never entered into evidence.

It is not shocking that the Okinawan judges and the prosecutors refuse to acquit Major Brown.  We have already seen numerous, blatant examples of how corrupt they are.  In fact, with what we know about them now, we expect a conviction.  It became obvious to us that facts do not matter.  We know that the prosecutor's career is on the line, as is the Judges' careers.  They are literally not able to acquit an American in their system.

What is shocking is the fact that the U.S. Embassy, the State Department, and the U.S. Government in general have remained silent.  There has not been a single public request from any U.S. official asking that the Japanese government stop this nonsense.  We have seen Major Brown's rights violated under the U.S. Constitution, violated under the SOFA, and violated under the Japanese Criminal Code.  Yet, the American Diplomats and elected officials remain silent.  As a side note, yesterday (October 15, 2003), Japan offered to provide over a Billion Dollars in aide to the Iraqi reconstruction.  So, we now expect the U.S. Government to continue to remain silent.  We believe that the U.S. is willing to sacrifice this 19-year veteran's future, freedom, and good name in order to keep good relations with a country that makes a practice of persecuting U.S. servicemen and women.

Contact Your Elected Officials

Let your Representatives know that you want them to help exonerate and free Major Brown.  Keep the pressure on and email them every day.  If you don't know what to say, click here are a couple of sample letters that can get you started.

Phone Calls Work Best

To reach the White House, call 202-456-1111

To reach your Congressman or Senators, call 1-800-839-5276 or 202-224-3121

Finding and Emailing Your Representatives

If you do not know the names of your Congressman or Senators, click on the link below and it will help you figure out who they are based on your home address.

Let President Bush and Congress know that it is important to support our U.S. Servicemen.  Let him know that you want his staff to keep the pressure on the Japanese Government until they release Major Brown.  Email the White House

Contact your Congressman by Clicking Here.

Contact your Senator by Clicking Here.

Contact the White House by Clicking Here.

Contact the Japanese Embassy 

Let the Japanese Politicians know that, as our ally in these trying times, they need to be working with us and that they have accidentally imprisoned an innocent man.  Keep the pressure on!  Every day, fax them a note, call them, or write them.  Please, please, please let them know how you feel but also, please be respectful.  Here is the contact information for the Japanese Embassy:

Ambassador Ryozo Kato
2520 Massachusetts Avenue N.W.
Washington, DC 20008

Phone: 202-238-6700
Fax:    202-328-2187

Contribute to the Legal Defense Fund

We are not the type of family to ask for help.  However, we are a little overwhelmed with this one.  Furthermore, we don't want Mike and his family to be bankrupt when this is over.  So, we're asking for your help.  All contributions will go to cover legal expenses and costs incurred by the effort to exonerate and free Major Brown.  Major Brown and his wife have requested that anything left over be given to the Marine Corps Program "Toys for Tots".  So, that's what we're going to do.  We are not looking to profit from this nightmare and, being the Marine family that we are, we think the "Toys for Tots" program is a pretty good cause.

Please make your check or money order payable to: "The Legal Defense Fund for Major Brown"

Please mail all contributions to:

Walter E. Laake, Jr. Esquire
Joseph, Greenwald & Laake, P.A.
6404 Ivy Lane, Suite 400
Greenbelt, MD 20770

Thank you.

Hold a Rally in Your Area

We would love to hear from anyone who wants to go that extra mile and hold a rally in front of a Japanese Embassy or Consulate.  Contact us by Clicking Here and we will give you assistance and publicize your efforts on this website.

Contact the Press

Contact the press by clicking on one of the links below and let them know how you feel.  Let them know that we are watching and we want to see them publicize Major Brown's story.