Jason Rother was a 19-year-old United States Marine Corpslance corporal who was abandoned in the harsh Mojave Desert during a training exercise, causing his death from dehydration and exposure. His death is now commonly used as a lesson taught to members of the military about the importance of accountability and responsibility.
Death
Rother was assigned to Kilo Company, Third Battalion, Second Marine Regiment, Second Marine Division based out of Camp Lejeune, North Carolina. In August 1988, the unit was sent to the massive Marine Corps Air Ground Combat Center Twentynine Palms for desert warfare training in the Mojave desert. First Lt Allen Lawson, a native of Flint, Michigan, was assigned the task of posting road guards on the night of August 30, 1988, along the route position of a battalion night movement exercise. Lawson disobeyed the order to place road guards in pairs, got lost, forgot where he had placed LCpl Rother, and upon the completion of the exercise failed to mention that Rother was missing, as did two sergeants responsible for LCpl Rother, Sgts Thomas Turnell, and Christopher Clyde. Over 40 hours had passed without anyone in the battalion knowing or saying that Rother was missing, when an armory weapons inventory got the chain of command's attention due to LCpl Rother's weapon not having been returned. Several searches were launched with over 1,000 Marines on foot, helicopters, and thermal imaging gear. Rother was not carrying a map or compass, had very little water, and weighed only. The first search discovered he had left behind some of his gear and made an arrow out of stones where he had originally been dropped off. That search, and several others, however, failed to locate him. LCpl Rother's remains would not be found until December 4, four months after his disappearance. All that was left were skeletal remains. It was believed that Rother likely died less than 24 hours before the first search was launched and that the temperature on the day had reached. Tracing the distance, it was found that Rother had hiked over and was only from the base.
Fallout
The Marine Corps commandant, General Al Gray, was highly displeased with an initial report that he thought was largely a coverup by the battalion. He ordered an outside investigation which resulted in the courts-martial of 1stLt Lawson, Sgt Turnell, and Sgt Clyde. It was revealed that Lt Lawson had four convictions for driving while intoxicated and had previously tried to resign his commission, but was denied. It was not, however, known if Lawson's problems with alcohol contributed to this situation. During the trial several Marines stated they had objected to Lawson's decision to place road guards without partners, but he overruled them as he was senior in rank. Lawson was found guilty of dereliction of duty and sentenced to discharge and four months' confinement in the brig. Sgts Turnell and Clyde were both found guilty and were demoted to LCpl, thus ending their Marine Corps careers. Additionally, the battalion commander, LtCol Robeson, and executive officer, Maj Holm, were both relieved of their duties. Robeson would die less than two years later in an accident on his North Carolina farm.
Present day
Lance Corporal Rother is buried in the Fort Snelling National Cemetery in his hometown of Minneapolis, Minnesota. The death of LCpl Rother is now one that is familiar to many in the Marine Corps as it is often taught as a lesson of warning on the importance of accountability. His death is especially taught in desert survival classes that all Marines stationed at 29 Palms attend annually. There are no markers to indicate where LCpl Rother was placed by Lt Lawson, nor a memorial marker for where his remains were found.
