Editor’s note: This article contains references to sexual assault.
An active-duty Marine Corps recruiter who penned a self-published “memoir” detailing an inappropriate relationship with a teenage recruit was charged under the Uniform Code of Military Justice last month and will face a court-martial hearing next week, service officials told Military.com on Tuesday.
Gunnery Sgt. Christopher Champagne, 37, was charged with violation of a general order and prohibited activities with a recruit by a person in a position of special trust after military law enforcement investigated his alleged misconduct, the officials said. The recruit was 17 years old when Champagne began to “groom” her, the former recruit’s family previously told Military.com.
The charges come nearly a year after Champagne published a book that described his own pursuit of a recruit who was not old enough to sign up for the military without her parents’ permission. The family and the former recruit alleged that Champagne sexually assaulted, stalked, extorted and plied the teenager with alcohol during that year, among other abusive behavior.
The mother of the former recruit told Military.com on Wednesday that the charges were “absolutely not” adequate for the “year of hell” that Champagne put them through.
“The military doesn’t care. They don’t care about these girls. They don’t care about these kids. They don’t care about my daughter,” Kathlyn, the former recruit’s mother, said. “They don’t care about my family. None of it. It’s disgusting to me. The whole thing is disgusting. And they’re not held accountable. The military is not held accountable.”
Champagne’s former in-laws also told Military.com that the charges for the alleged abuse toward the recruit were insufficient, especially after his ex-wife reported multiple complaints against him through local law enforcement and military entities years ago to no avail, including sexual assault, partner abuse and intrusive cameras Champagne allegedly installed in private spaces in their home.
Military.com is withholding the name of Kathlyn’s daughter — as well as the family’s last name — given her age when the alleged abuse started and the publication’s policy not to print the names of alleged sexual assault victims.
Military.com attempted to contact Champagne on Wednesday afternoon via a phone call, but was unsuccessful. Champagne has previously denied the allegations against him, and last year his command confirmed that he was pulled from recruiting duty but remained in active service. He is a meteorological and oceanographic forecaster and is assigned to the Marine Corps’ Western Recruiting Region. He was assigned to a recruiting station in Texas during the alleged abuse.
Champagne showed up at the recruit’s home last summer, according to a police report obtained by Military.com and the recruit’s family. They took it as a threatening sign and reported it to law enforcement. It was the culmination of more than a year of what the recruit’s family described as predatory behavior that included violating military protective orders, stalking, sexual extortion and manipulation.
“He didn’t just abuse his position of power, he exploited her by writing a book about her,” Kristi Champagne, a Marine veteran and the gunnery sergeant’s ex-wife, told Military.com in a phone call Wednesday. “He exploited a 17-year-old girl publicly to the world; anybody in the entire world had access — for at least a while — to be able to download and read about a 17-year-old girl and her trauma.”
Kristi Champagne is a victim of alleged sexual assault but consented to be quoted by name by Military.com.
Both families told Military.com that the service and law enforcement failed to hold Champagne accountable, properly investigate him, and provide a sense of safety for them amid the allegations.
“It says that the Marine Corps doesn’t care about you once you’re out — because that’s how it came across to me,” Kristi Champagne said, adding that she believes the service is trying to sweep the case under the rug. “Once you’re out, you’re no longer a brother or sister in arms. … I was out, so my word meant nothing.”
Kathlyn told Military.com that her daughter was given a Naval Criminal Investigative Service, or NCIS, telephone number to deliver evidence of the allegations but — after sending the evidence they compiled — found out the number went nowhere.
“Nobody was picking it up. Nobody was transcribing it, nobody was using it as evidence or anything,” Kathlyn said, adding that by last summer NCIS had collected the information that her daughter had been trying to relay to it.
Military.com contacted NCIS and the Marine Corps’ Western Recruiting Region for comment regarding the charges and claims of failure in the investigative process.
The Marine Corps takes allegations of misconduct “very seriously and does not tolerate deviation from the standards and policies of our recruiting environments, the service, or the Uniform Code of Military Justice,” Steve Posy, a service spokesperson, told Military.com late Wednesday. “All allegations of deviation from such policies and directives are investigated thoroughly and adjudicated appropriately.
“We are committed to ensuring that every case is handled with the utmost diligence, fairness and transparency, with the well-being of all parties involved being of the highest priority,” he continued, adding that he encouraged anyone with safety concerns to bring them forward. “The safety of our prospective applicants is a top priority, as it is for all commanders across the force, and the Marine Corps has measures in place to protect individuals throughout the judicial process.”
NCIS confirmed that the investigation is complete and pending adjudication, but would not comment further while the legal process is ongoing.
Champagne published the memoir last October and billed it as a “true story.” It included graphic sexual details and — through his own words — apparent violations of military policy. Rob Kersch, Kristi Champagne’s father and a 13-year Navy veteran, said that he believes the memoir was Champagne’s attempt to “control a narrative” about his inappropriate behavior and paint himself as a victim.
“Recruiters have a responsibility to respect and treat the recruits with dignity and to honor the agreements that they have with the recruit,” said Kersch, who compiled his own documentation of Champagne’s alleged behavior and shared it with Military.com. “This really should be something that recruiters throughout the military should be looking at and taking as an example of what not to do.”
The Marine Corps places special trust in recruiters to usher in the next generation of Marines. Department of Defense policy strictly prohibits recruiters from engaging in inappropriate relationships with recruits or those who have yet to ship to basic training, also known as “poolees.” The policy is meant to prohibit recruiters from taking advantage of their inherent position of power over a young person looking to join the service.
The recruit and her family filed a $5 million complaint against the Marine Corps, Military.com reported in February. Kathlyn said the service has not responded to the lawsuit, adding that she is concerned that what she considers to be light charges against Champagne will result in a short sentence and further harm to her, her daughter and her family.
“She’s trying to get her life better, and she still is in fear that this guy is going to come after her and kill her, or kill us, or kill her sister, as soon as he gets out, because he’s going to be that mad,” Kathlyn said. “She’s still completely wrecked by this.”
Champagne was charged Aug. 9 and will face a court-martial hearing Sept. 26. The former recruit intends to attend the hearing to make a statement, which was shared with Military.com by her mother.
“When the Marines recruited me, I thought I would be part of something important, be able to serve my country, be a part of a group that took care of each other. That’s what I wanted,” part of the statement said. “I didn’t want you. … When you forced me to sleep with you, I didn’t choose that … when you gave me alcohol, I didn’t want to drink it. … When you demanded to know where I was, I didn’t want to tell you.
“I am no longer yours, and I never will be,” the former recruit’s statement continued. “Because that is what I want. That is my choice. Forever.”