Charles Robert Jenkins

The announcement of the date suggests that Jenkins has decided to plead guilty to at least one of the charges against him, probably in exchange for a light sentence.

Jenkins turned himself in to the U.S. Army at its Japan headquarters at Camp Zama on Sept. 11 and has been living there with his wife, former abductee Hitomi Soga, and their two North Korea-born daughters pending trial. The 64-year-old has been put back in uniform and assigned to clerical duties with a new unit.

Along with desertion, Jenkins faces two counts of soliciting other service members to desert, one of aiding the enemy and two of encouraging disloyalty.

In wartime, the maximum penalty for desertion is death. Sentences for the same charge in peacetime range from life in prison at hard labor to a dishonorable discharge. Because the United States and North Korea were not technically at war in 1965, it is not clear which category Jenkins' case falls into.

The Japan Times Weekly: Oct. 16, 2004
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