A former Marine drill instructor who was sentenced to prison following the hazing death of a recruit at boot camp was released early and recently arrested for a separate crime.
Joseph Felix, a former gunnery sergeant, was sentenced to 10 years in prison in November 2017 for hazing recruits, including one who died. The incident was one of the biggest hazing scandals in the history of the Recruit Depot at Parris Island, South Carolina, prompting sweeping investigations that led to several Marines being reassigned, fired, and court-martialed.
But Felix left the United States Disciplinary Barracks at Fort Leavenworth, Kansas, little more than seven years later — released early for good behavior. Now he’s been arrested in South Carolina and charged with cruelty to children, according to the Beaufort County Sheriff’s Office.
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The arrest took place on Jan. 25 in Burton, South Carolina, according to a redacted copy of the incident report provided to Task & Purpose. Felix was booked into the Beaufort County Detention Center and then released on bond the following day, said Lt. Daniel Allen, a spokesman for the sheriff’s office.
Felix could not be reached for comment for this story.
‘You have to hate recruits to train them’
Felix was one of several Marines referred to court-martial after an investigation into the death of a recruit in Felix’s platoon, Raheel Siddiqui, uncovered a pattern of misconduct at Parris Island. Twenty Marines at the recruit depot were removed from their jobs in the aftermath of Siddiqui’s death.
On March 18, 2016, Siddiqui handed his drill instructors a note asking to go to get medical help because his throat was so sore that he could not speak. Instead, Felix made Siddiqui run from one end of the squad bay and back until he collapsed. While Siddiqui was on the floor, Felix slapped him. Siddiqui then got up, ran to a stairwell, and jumped to his death.
At Felix’s trial, Capt. Corey Wielert, a Marine prosecutor, said that Felix explained to an investigator why he treated recruits so harshly: “You have to hate recruits to train them. “They get three meals a day, sleep eight hours. The more you hate them, the better you train them.”
Felix was held at the United States Disciplinary Barracks at Fort Leavenworth, Kansas, after being convicted at a general court-martial in November 2017 of charges stemming from several incidents of hazing, such as crowding up to 40 recruits into a laundry room and walking on top of them, and singling out Muslim recruits for abuse
But on March 25, 2024, the Naval Clemency and Parole Board approved Felix for Mandatory Supervised Release from prison, said Lt. Col. Bryen Freigo a spokesman for the U.S. Army Combined Arms Center at Fort Leavenworth.
Felix was released from the United States Disciplinary Barracks at Fort Leavenworth, Kansas, on Dec. 23, 2024, under the provision that he be supervised by the U.S. Probation and Pretrial Services District of South Carolina for the remainder of his original sentence, Freigo told Task & Purpose.
“The [United States Disciplinary Barracks] may not release the specific conditions of supervision,” Freigo said. “However, as a matter of process, any potential violations are reviewed by the [U.S. Probation and Pretrial Services] and may result in the inmate’s return to confinement.”
‘Credit’ for good behavior
Inmates can shave up to 5 days off their sentence per month in what is known as good conduct time, said Phillip Stackhouse, a civilian attorney who often represents service members. They can get an additional sentence reduction of up to eight days per month for taking part in rehabilitation programs, education efforts, and other activities, known as earned time.
That means service members sentenced to 10 years in prison can get out up to three years early through a combination of good conduct and earned time, Stackhouse told Task & Purpose.
When you add up an inmate’s accrued credit for both good and extra good conduct, you get an inmate’s Minimum Release Date, when he or she can leave prison early.
Overall, offering credit for good behavior helps maintain good order among inmates while they are in confinement, said retired Marine Lt. Col. Colby Vokey, who is now a civilian attorney who represents service members.
“You want to rehabilitate people who are incarcerated, and you provide them incentives to work toward that rehabilitation and to behave while they’re confined,” Vokey told Task & Purpose. “That’s the purpose of prisoners earning good time credit.”
As part of supervised release, former inmates must routinely check in with a federal probation officer, usually about once per month, said Greg Rinckey, founding partner at the Tully Rinckey law firm.
“They can also randomly check in with you,” Rinckey told Task & Purpose. “You’re not allowed to have any negative contact with law enforcement. You can’t be drinking, get a DWI, those types of things. And if you violate the terms of your supervised release, then you can be reincarcerated.”
Felix is tentatively scheduled to appear in court on March 12, according to the Beaufort County Sheriff’s Office.
