USA Marine Kymani Powell pleads guilty to assaulting woman in Landmark Hotel

Police & Courts

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An American Marine who drunkenly groped a woman in a Territory nightclub has promised to hold his mates to account and prevent future seedy assaults.

Kymani Powell appeared in Darwin Local Court on Friday to plead guilty to unlawfully assaulting a woman at the Landmark Hotel on Roystonea Ave, on April 30.

Prosecutor Marty Aust said the Connecticut man “forcefully groped” his victim, who was unable to defend herself in the popular nightclub. 

“This was an uninvited, unwanted intrusion on an intimate area of her body by a stranger,” Mr Aust said.

Defence barrister Mary Chalmers said 21-year-old  Powell had struggled with being separated from his family, and was appalled by his own actions.

“It was … an ill-advised lapse in his otherwise exemplary character.”

Chief Judge Elizabeth Morris found him guilty, but did not record a conviction. Powell was also fined $150.

Marine boasted about being ‘trained killer’ before bouncer allegedly knocked him out

A US Marine boasted about being a “trained killer” in the minutes before he was allegedly knocked unconscious by a Darwin bouncer last year, a court has heard.

On Tuesday, venue manager Matthew Hutcheon told jurors in Summers’ trial he had told police on the night that “Hayden slapped the shit out of him” following “multiple threats of physical harm”.

In an incident report annexed to Mr Hutcheon’s police statement, the court heard he also noted Thomason was “threatening his military training and ability to kill”.

“I believe he uttered that he could kill and that he was a trained killer,” he told Crown prosecutor Ian Rowbottom.

the situation went for multiple minutes, there were multiple threats of physical violence

Head of US marine force in Darwin stood down for drink-driving on nightclub strip

US Colonel James Schnelle is stood down from his job of commanding the largest contingent of Marines ever to rotate through the Top End after being caught drink-driving, a Darwin court hears.

Colonel James Schnelle, 48, appeared in Darwin Local Court this morning, charged with medium-range drink-driving.

The court heard he failed a random breath test on Darwin's Mitchell Street in the early hours of a Sunday morning late last month.

No conviction was recorded, but the court heard Colonel Schnelle had been stood down from his job of commanding the largest contingent of Marines ever to rotate through the Top End.

Colonel Schnelle is the highest ranking US Marine in Darwin, and is a decorated commander with three service awards.

"This is a man of very high character, he has no convictions anywhere in the world and has contributed immensely to society," Colonel Schnelle's lawyer told the court. "The US Marines are going to deal with him very harshly." His lawyer said any conviction would affect any assignments or promotions he could hope to get in future.

US Marine charged with violent assault returns to Brisbane

A US Marine charged with the violent assault of a female public servant in a car park at Enoggera has had his bail amended to allow him to return to Brisbane.

Taylor Wyatt Elwood, 20, was arrested at Enoggera Barracks in Brisbane's north-west on July 3 after allegedly dragging the woman, aged in her 60s, out of her parked car and assaulting her.

He was further charged with allegedly assaulting an off-duty police officer who intervened, and wilful damage to the woman's car.

The woman was taken to hospital by ambulance for treatment of facial injuries and later released. In July Mr Elwood was permitted by the court to relocate to Robertson Barracks in Darwin as part of the US Marine Rotational Unit.

USA Marine bashed woman, 60: court told

A DARWIN-BASED US Marine allegedly disguised himself in a motorbike helmet before dragging a 60-year-old woman from her car and slamming her head into vehicles in the carpark earlier this month.

Court documents allege the woman, who worked at a Brisbane Barracks, was thrown against cars and had her head slammed on vehicles and a steel guard rail while being told “be quiet” as she screamed for help.

Elwood allegedly continued the attack until an Australian Federal Police officer at the Army base heard the woman shouting “no” and “please” and intervened.

The 20-year-old Marine allegedly tried to bite the officer when he tried to help the woman. It took three people to detain the man before he was arrested and granted watchhouse bail earlier this month.

The woman sustained serious injuries, including bruising and cuts.

Marine Rotational Force Darwin spokesman First Lieutenant Jose Uriarte confirmed Elwood remained an “active-duty Marine” despite the charges.