Court-Martial at Parris Island: The Ribbon Creek Incident Pbk. Ed Edition

by John C. III Stevens (Author)

27 customer reviews

ISBN-13: 978-1570037030

ISBN-10: 1570037035

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On the night of April 8, 1956, marine drill instructor Matthew McKeon led Platoon 71 on a forced march through the backwaters of Parris Island in an effort to restore flagging discipline. Unexpectedly strong currents in Ribbon Creek and an ensuing panic led to the drowning of six recruits. The tragedy of Ribbon Creek and the court-martial of Staff Sergeant McKeon became the subject of sensational national media coverage and put the future of the U.S. Marine Corps in jeopardy.

Court-Martial at Parris Island: The Ribbon Creek Incident

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Product Details

Paperback: 218 pages
Publisher: University of South Carolina Press; Pbk. Ed edition (May 1, 2007)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 1570037035
ISBN-13: 978-1570037030
Product Dimensions: 6 x 0.5 x 9 inches
Shipping Weight: 11.2 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars See all reviews (27 customer reviews)
Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,133,292 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- #228 in Books > Law > Specialties > Military
- #1465 in Books > Law > Legal History
- #3186 in Books > Textbooks > Humanities > History > Military

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Customer Reviews

4.4 out of 5 stars

5 star		63%
4 star		18%
3 star		15%
2 star		0%
1 star		4%

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Ribbon Creek Review and Commentary

By Robert L. Rohrer on December 8, 2002

Format: Hardcover

I want to begin my comments by saying this is an excellent balanced book and that Stevens deserves a lot of credit. I would further recommend it to any Marine or others interested in Marine Corps history.
I will also state it is my opinion that S.Sgt. Matthew McKeon was a good man who made a tragic mistake. The factors leading up to the events of the evening of April 8, 1956 are manifold and can only be fully understood by reading Stevens' book.
My personal perspective comes from having served in the USMCR and the USMC from October 1956 until August 1962 when I was Honorably discharged as a Corporal E-4. I went to Parris Island in early February of 1957 and my recruit training virtually overlaps the events of a year earlier, putting me at the rifle range at about the same time of year.
Like all of us who went though boot training, I too pulled butts at the range. The discipline and control there was far different than back at main side so on several days I took the opportunity to spend my entire lunch break walking all over the Ribbon Creek area. I wanted to understand this incident.
Definitions from Webster...
Marine: Of or relating to the sea.
Amphibious: Able to live on both land and in water.
Swim: To propel oneself in water...To float on a liquid...
DI Motto: Let's be damn sure that no man's ghost will ever say "If your training program had only done its job."
And from Chesty Puller we learn the mission of Marine Corps training! "...success in battle..."
When I got to Parris Island, I was shocked to see recruits who could not swim had joined a service called the Marine Corps. I also thought it strange the USMC would accept anyone who could not swim, but I guess the Navy does too. How much W.W.Read more ›

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Why Ribbon Creek?

By Colonel USMC on December 26, 1999

Format: Hardcover

An extremely informative & detailed read! Stevens iterates a tragic event in Marine Corps history with a direct, thought provoking style. As the current Commanding Officer of the Recruit Training Regiment at Parris Island, I am encouraging my officers & drill instructors to read this book in order to better understand how close we, the Marine Corps, as an organization, came to being disestablished because of the actions of just one man. Another book of interest on the same subject matter is Keith Fleming's, "The U.S. Marine Corps in Crisis: Ribbon Creek & Recruit Training." Another important book in helping to understand how the recruit training process has evolved.

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An Examination of Military Justice.

By Gerard J. St John on June 6, 2008

Format: Paperback Verified Purchase

This is a lawyer's book -- a good one.

In April 1956, a Marine drill instructor led a platoon of recruits on a night march into the tidal waters of Ribbon Creek in the Marine Corps Recruit Depot, Parris Island, South Carolina. Some of the recruits strayed into deep water; six of them drowned. The public news media cried out for punishment of the responsible party. The public furor also was a threat to the continued funding of the Marine Corps. The most obvious target of this wrath was the drill instructor, Sgt. Matthew McKeon, who was all but abandoned by his commanding officers in a rush to judgment.

The book follows the ordeal of Matthew McKeon from his immediate arrest and public condemnation by the Commandant of the Marine Corps, through a court of inquiry and then a general court-martial. The author is a retired judge of the family and probate court in Essex, Massachusetts, and also a former Marine who went through boot camp in Parris Island in 1957. In preparation for this book, Judge Stevens reviewed the official records of the government and also conducted interviews of many of the persons involved.

Interestingly, the main character in the book is not Sgt. McKeon. The main character is Emile Zola Berman, an experienced New York civil trial lawyer who represented McKeon in the general court-martial without charging a fee. In contrast, General Randolph McCall Pate, the Commandant of the Marine Corps, is portrayed in a negative light and General Wallace Greene, who led the court of inquiry, is more or less given a free pass.

The court-martial lasted more than three weeks; forty-eight witnesses testified. There were many rulings on the admissibility of evidence and on strategic and tactical matters.Read more ›

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Information from a U.S. Marine

By Mike Mooney on December 2, 2012

Format: Paperback

After reading in the introduction that the recruits marched from the "H" shaped wooden barracks at MCRD, Parris Island, I started to wonder at the depth of the investigative reporting that the author provided.
The wooden "H" barracks were located at "Mainside" where the bulk of the boot camp training was performed.
When I went through recruit training at Parris Island early in 1959, there was a wooden sign hanging from the top of the Quonset hut where I stayed while in training at the rifle range. It simply stated that "From this hut 6 Marines marched to their death, April 8, 1956." I will cautiously continue reading the book.
Semper Fidelis.

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I read it...... and was there again.

By A Customer on July 23, 1999

Format: Hardcover

I was the Platoon right guide and assisted Langone in hurding the guys into the swamp. I was thinking that they were fooling around with the "Help me! " routine. But it was for real, Guys were going down. Mr. Stevens did his homework and produced and admirable piece of work. I look foward to some sort of follow-up on what the rest of the guys are doing. Some say it was our platoon that slightly changed the way the Corps operates at that entry level, but I would like to believe that nothing changed because that is the way it worked before we came along. Mac was just unfortunate that this happened and got out to the press of the 1950's south. Not a very nice place at the time, as I can recall.

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Most Recent Customer Reviews

This is a great book. It is not in the least dry

This is a great book. It is not in the least dry. It covers the incident and some of the more interesting aspects of the trial. Read more

Published 5 months ago by Pam Bjerke

Informative

Very interesting and informative book. I arrived at Parris Island in July 1962, a few years after the incident and this book gave me a better understanding of what happened on the... Read more

Published 7 months ago by Old Marine

Three Stars

I'm almost done with the book and so far its very interesting.

Published 9 months ago by Patrick Pudetti

Five Stars

Excellent book carefully researched.

Published 10 months ago by Tom Sexton

Having been at Parris Island six months before this happened ...

Having been at Parris Island six months before this happened, I appreciated knowing what actually did happen to those kids,God rest their souls. Semper Fidelis!

Published 19 months ago by Marvet John

Excellent Read

The book was a gift for a friend related to a character in the book so he was very grateful and enjoyed the book.

Published 24 months ago by J. Sackmann

Very Satisfied

This purchase was easy and exceeded my expectations. A very satisfied shopper here. Have bought here in the past and will again.

Published on February 7, 2014 by teufelhunde

Ribbon Creek memories still alive for Marines

Judge Stevens has done a wonderful job describing the tragedy, the investigation, the trial and includes several interviews with the participants. Read more

Published on August 17, 2013 by Don Rait

FOR MY SON

I bought this book for my son who is an active duty officer Marine, and was recently stationed at Parris Island, and he and his family lived on the island. Read more

Published on January 17, 2013 by Peacock

Alcohol is trouble for a DI

I haven't read the book yet but I was in the Marine Corp during Vietnam and I can tell you first hand that DIs, even when not drinking can make serious errors. Read more

Published on November 13, 2008 by Dan R. Sailor

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