YouTube Video Shows Marine Killing a Puppy

By Pamela Mortimer

The United States Marines Corps has launched a full investigation after viewing a shocking video of a Marine tossing a puppy off a cliff. The unidentified Marine was allegedly joking with another soldier at the time of the horrific incident. A spokesman for the Marine Corps has called the video "deplorable."

"The video is shocking and deplorable and is contrary to the high standards we expect of every Marine," stated Major Chris Perrine. Perrine is the public affairs director at the Marine Corps base in Kaneohe Bay, Hawaii.

"This video came to our attention this morning, and we have initiated an investigation," he said. "We do not tolerate this type of behavior and will take appropriate action."

While the identity of the Marine in question has not been obtained, Perrine said it appears that the man in the video is a lance corporal who may be based with a unit in the Hawaiian Islands. Perrine was quick to point out, however, that the soldier’s actions weren't characteristic of those of most men and women who serve.

"The vast majority of Marines conduct their duties in an honorable manner that brings great credit upon the Marine Corps and the United States," he said. "There have been numerous stories of Marines adopting pets and bringing them home from Iraq or helping to arrange life-saving medical care for Iraqi children. Those are the stories that exemplify what we stand for and how most Marines behave."

The low-quality clip featured on YouTube shows the two Marines joking around as one of the men holds up what appears to be a motionless black and white puppy. Then the man hurls the young dog into a rocky gully.

"Oh, I tripped," the man in the clip says as the puppy is thrown.

An unseen man can be heard saying: "That’s mean. That was mean, Motari."

Yelping sounds can be heard as the puppy flies through the air.

The clip, which has been viewed more than 145,000 times since it was uploaded onto the website YouTube two days ago, has not been verified as authentic, although there are a large number of bloggers and forum members that have been frantically trying to track down information on the soldier.

"Certainly there's a lot of outrage and a lot of people are upset about it. I think every Marine is upset about this video," Perrine said. "We will investigate and take appropriate action and make sure our Marine is safe as well."

"That is mistreatment of a puppy. That is a violation of anybody's standards, and the Marine Corps sets extremely high standards."