After the war, Cukela served at overseas bases in Haiti, Santo Domingo, the Philippines, and Tientsin, China, and at domestic stations in Quantico, Virginia; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania; Norfolk, Virginia; Hampton Roads, Virginia; Mare Island, California; Washington, D.C.; Nashville, Indiana, and Fort Knox, Kentucky.

Cukela served as a second lieutenant of United States Marine Corps stationed at Maissade, Republic of Haiti in the times of the Second Caco War of 1919–1920.
By 1919, Haitian Charlemagne Péralte had organized more than a thousand armed guerrillas (called cacos), to militarily oppose the United States Marine occupation.
The marines responded to the resistance with a counterinsurgency campaign that razed villages, killed thousands of Haitians, and destroyed the livelihoods of even more.
Cukela was the one of the US military personnel questioned by a US Senate committee for the atrocities he committed and abuse of power.
Cukela executed a group of prisoners in the middle of a Marine camp there.
For this atrocity he was not court martialed rather transferred to another camp 
.
General Barnett, Marine Corps Commandant in 1920 set up a board headed by Colonel John H. Russell, Jr. to decide which wartime temporary officers would be retired, demoted, or discharged.
Educated men of good family were preferred over formerly enlisted men with little formal education.
As a consequence of those criteria Cukela was demoted from first lieutenant to second lieutenant despite his wartime heroism.
   However, by 1927 he was a captain of the 75th Company of Marines serving in Tientsin, China.
 
From June 1933 to January 1934, Cukela served as a company commander with the Civilian Conservation Corps.
His last years in the Marine Corps were spent at Norfolk, where he served as the post quartermaster.
Retired as a major on June 30, 1940, he was recalled to active duty on July 30, of the same year.
After the war, Cukela served at overseas bases in Haiti, Santo Domingo, the Philippines, and Tientsin, China, and at domestic stations in Quantico, Virginia; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania; Norfolk, Virginia; Hampton Roads, Virginia; Mare Island, California; Washington, D.C.; Nashville, Indiana, and Fort Knox, Kentucky.
Cukela served as a second lieutenant of United States Marine Corps stationed at Maissade, Republic of Haiti in the times of the Second Caco War of 1919–1920. By 1919, Haitian Charlemagne Péralte had organized more than a thousand armed guerrillas (called cacos), to militarily oppose the United States Marine occupation. The marines responded to the resistance with a counterinsurgency campaign that razed villages, killed thousands of Haitians, and destroyed the livelihoods of even more. Cukela was the one of the US military personnel questioned by a US Senate committee for the atrocities he committed and abuse of power. Cukela executed a group of prisoners in the middle of a Marine camp there. For this atrocity he was not court martialed rather transferred to another camp 
. General Barnett, Marine Corps Commandant in 1920 set up a board headed by Colonel John H. Russell, Jr. to decide which wartime temporary officers would be retired, demoted, or discharged. Educated men of good family were preferred over formerly enlisted men with little formal education. As a consequence of those criteria Cukela was demoted from first lieutenant to second lieutenant despite his wartime heroism.    However, by 1927 he was a captain of the 75th Company of Marines serving in Tientsin, China.  
From June 1933 to January 1934, Cukela served as a company commander with the Civilian Conservation Corps. His last years in the Marine Corps were spent at Norfolk, where he served as the post quartermaster. Retired as a major on June 30, 1940, he was recalled to active duty on July 30, of the same year.
Louis Cukela