SAN DIEGO (AP) -- A Marine boot camp drill instructor was convicted Wednesday of abusing recruits at one of the country's two training depots.
A military jury found Sgt. Jerrod M. Glass guilty of multiple counts of cruelty and maltreatment, destruction of personal property, assault and violating orders on how to treat recruits.
Glass, who was relieved of duty as a drill instructor in February, faces up to 11 years of confinement, dishonorable discharge, reduction in rank, and forfeiture of pay and benefits. A sentencing hearing began immediately following the verdict.
Glass, who volunteered for two tours in Iraq, had worked as a drill instructor at the Marine Corps Recruit Depot for less than a year when the suspected mistreatment occurred.
He was one of three drill instructors charged with abusing recruits. Sgt. Robert C. Hankins and Sgt. Brian M. Wendel are facing special courts-martial on separate charges related to the alleged incidents. A fourth instructor, Sgt. Joseph Villagomez, received administrative punishment.
Glass, 25, was accused of ordering one recruit to jump headfirst into a trash can and then pushing him farther into the container. He is also accused of striking recruits with a tent pole and a heavy flashlight. None of the recruits was seriously injured.
Glass' parents have repeatedly said their son did not act maliciously. They said they believe their son was being scapegoated for commonly accepted practices.
During the courts-martial, witnesses testified Glass routinely stomped on recruits' toiletry kits, breaking razors and soap containers inside, for minor infractions like not displaying name tags properly.
They said Glass and another drill instructor would line recruits up after meals and force them to down liters of water from their canteens in a ritual they referred to as "waterbowling."
Telephone calls to Glass' attorney and his family were not immediately returned.
About 17,000 recruits graduate each year from the depot. It is one of only two depots nationwide; the other is in Parris Island, S.C.
