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About 1,587 U.S. Marines are stationed in the tropical city,
strategically located on the coastal doorstep of Indonesia, as
part of an annual rotation begun in 2011 in former President
Barack Obama's military pivot to the Asia-Pacific region.
Colonel James Schnelle was relieved of his duties last month
"due to a loss of trust and confidence," immediately after
reporting the incident to superiors, the spokesman, First
Lieutenant Jose Uriarte, told Reuters.
Schnelle had been drinking at an Irish-themed bar on the city's
nightclub strip until the early hours of Sept. 30 when he was
pulled over and breath-tested, Australian Broadcasting
Corporation said.
Police found him over the legal alcohol limit, the broadcaster
said, and he walked the 3.4 km (2.1 miles) home and told his
superiors. He pleaded guilty, was fined A$500 ($353) and banned
from driving for six months, a court spokesman said.
"I am personally responsible for the poor judgment exhibited in
the early hours of Sunday, 30 September," Schnelle said in an
emailed statement.
"The one extremely poor personal decision I made ... should not
overshadow the significant accomplishments made by (the Marines'
deployment) over these past six months."
The Marines' presence, in a city that has long supported a
garrison of thousands of Australian troops, has largely been
free of the tension stoked at times in Okinawa, Japan, where
soldiers' bad behavior has been a lightning rod for resentment.
Lieutenant Colonel Jeramy Brady will replace Schnelle in charge
of the Darwin Marines' contingent, which is scheduled to leave
Darwin this month, and the matter is being investigated
internally, Uriarte said.
(Reporting by Tom Westbrook; Editing by Clarence Fernandez)
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