Marines are often not from the area where they are stationed. If he was from somewhere in the Western US he may not have thought of raccoons as a rabies risk.

Marines are often not from the area where they are stationed. If he was from somewhere in the Western US he may not have thought of raccoons as a rabies risk. Rabies is not established in the raccoon populations of California, Oregon, or Washington so the only rabid raccoons you might find are ones that recently got it from a bat or (in California) a skunk. In California that works out to around 4 rabid raccoons found every 20 years or so. In Oregon no rabid raccoons have been documented in at least 50 years. In Washington no rabid raccoons have ever been documented.