The family of slain Filipino transgender Jeffrey
"Jennifer" Laude has asked the Olongapo City Regional Trial Court
(RTC) to reconsider its Dec. 23, 2014 ruling dismissing their bid for the
transfer of accused United States Marine Lance Cpl. Joseph Scott Pemberton to a
regular jail.
In their motion for reconsideration (MR), Marilou S. Laude,
sister of the victim, also asked the Olongapo RTC to allow media coverage of
the trial.
Laude, through her lawyer Harry Roque, said that the
“rationale” behind the “three-day notice rule” was not violated in this case
because the Pemberton camp had the opportunity to be given their side on their
motion.
Roque said that Atty. Felimon Ray Javier, collaborating
counsel for Pemberton, as well as Olongapo City Chief Prosecutor Emilie Fe
Delos Santos were both present during the hearing of the motions and even made
their comments.
Under the Rules of Court, the three-day notice rule requires
every written motion required to be heard to be served upon the adverse party
at least three days before the date of hearing.
Such rule imposes upon the movant the burden of making sure
that the other party actually receives his motion at least three days before
the hearing so that the adverse party may have ample time to prepare.
Roque added that the rule is not “absolute”.
He said that non-observance of the rule is allowed as long
as the rights of the other party were not prejudiced.
He cited Marilou's “right to access to justice” under
international human rights law which exempts her from the requirement that a
public prosecutor must conforme to the motion that she will file in court.
"Under international human rights law, the private
complainant and her family members have the right to access to justice, a right
that is separate and distinct from the power of the Public Prosecutors to
prosecute the criminal case," he said.
He added that the issues raised in their motions "are
issues of transcendental importance and of primordial public interest. Hence,
it is essential that the honorable court resolve the two motions on its
substantive merits."
In their MR filed last December, they asked the Olongapo
City RTC to order the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) to transfer the
detention of Pemberton to the Olongapo City Jail.
In the said MR, Roque reiterated their position that
Pemberton should be with Philippine authorities citing Article V, Paragraph 3
(b) of the Visiting Forces Agreement (VFA) which states that “within the scope
of their legal competence, the authorities of the Philippines and the US shall
assist each other in the arrest of US personnel in the Philippines and in
handing them over to authorities who are to exercise jurisdiction in accordance
with the provisions of this article.”
They also cited the DOJ Opinion No.94 issued by then Justice
Secretary Serafin Cuevas which stated that in cases of particular importance
and extraordinary cases, the Philippine government may refuse a US
On their bid to allow media coverage, Roque said that they
have the right under international human rights law to know and be informed
about the proceedings through the media, including what is happening inside the
courtroom.
They cited the fact that Laude’s mother, Julita, and other
members of the family reside in a far-flung area in Leyte
making her unable to attend to all the proceedings in the case, aside from
financial constraints, making her and the rest of the family dependent on the
media for news on the case.
They also said that barring the media from the courtroom
during the proceedings is tantamount to violation of the right to free speech
and of the press.
“Barring the press from the courtroom might partake of a
serious limitation on the rights to free speech and of the press. The so-called
fourth estate has the constitutionally guaranteed protection to report on
matters of great public interest, including criminal proceedings in this case,”
their seven-page MR said.
http://www.pna.gov.ph/index.php?idn=1&sid=&nid=1&rid=724250
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