"The State Department cannot negotiate the outcome of a legal process and is not involved in any such discussions with Japan," department spokesman Richard Boucher's office said in a written reply to a question raised by the media at a briefing the previous day.

The government has been pushing for a quick resolution to Jenkins' case because the plight of his wife, former abductee Hitomi Soga, has generated enormous public sympathy.

Jenkins met with a U.S. military lawyer Aug. 5 at a Tokyo hospital where he is being treated, amid media speculation that he was considering a plea bargain to avoid severe punishment by the U.S. military justice system.

Boucher said Aug. 6 that Washington had informed the Japanese government that "we will seek custody of Sgt. Jenkins at an appropriate time.

"He faces serious charges, including desertion."

The Japan Times Weekly: Aug. 14, 2004
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