MANILA, 29 April 2006 — A judge yesterday rejected a motion by the Department of Justice (DOJ) to downgrade charges against three of four US Marines charged in the rape of a Filipino woman last year, keeping all of them detained as principal defendants in the case.
Justice Secretary Raul Gonzales last week said he found no conspiracy surrounding the alleged rape of the 22-year-old woman on Nov. 1 and decided to keep only one Marine as the principal defendant — Lance Cpl. Daniel Smith — who could face capital punishment, and the three others as accessories, who could face up to 20 years in prison.
Judge Benjamin Pozon of the Regional Trial Court in Manila's financial district of Makati said he could not allow the downgrading of the charges against the three Marines “on the basis of the evidence not yet presented” to the court.
Pozon also said the move by the Gonzales “not only asks for the disregard of the requirements of due process but also tends to erode the court’s independence.”
Pozon’s ruling came just hours before the arraignment of Smith, and his alleged co-conspirators — Lance Cpl. Keith Silkwood, Lance Cpl. Dominic Duplantis and Staff Sgt. Chad Carpentier.
Appearing before the court later, the accused refused to enter any plea, prompting the court to consider their plea “not guilty.”
The judge remanded the four into the custody of the US Embassy after their lawyers successfully fended off a bid by government prosecutors to have them arrested by police.
The accuser, daughter of a Philippine Navy serviceman and an accountant, was not in court yesterday.
The marines have insisted only one of them had sex with the woman and that it was consensual.
John Coluso and Jose Justiniano, lawyers for the accused, told reporters that they will ask Pozon to reconsider and will appeal to higher courts if necessary.
The US Embassy has refused to hand the soldiers over to local authorities until the trial starts, citing a “visiting forces agreement” that allows them to keep soldiers in their custody during legal proceedings.
The four defendants arrived in civilian clothes at the packed courtroom in Makati, escorted by US Embassy personnel.
They showed no overt reaction as four Filipino women shouted “Shame, Shame On You” outside the courtroom.
Several dozen left-wing Filipino protesters staged an anti-US picket outside the high-rise government building.
The case was transferred from Olongapo City near Subic Bay to a Manila court because the initial judge in the case had a conflict of interest. The alleged rape also has triggered anti-American street protests in the former US colony. The trial will resume on May 12. (With reports from agencies)
