Appellate court affirms conviction of US marine

The Court of Appeals on Monday affirmed a regional trial court’s conviction of a U.S. Marine for homicide and his sentence of up to 10 years in jail for killing transgender Jennifer Laude, whose heirs he was also ordered to compensate.

The Court of Appeals decision did not accept Lance Cpl. Joseph Scott Pemberton’s claim of self-defense in killing Laude inside a motel room in northwestern Olongapo city after they met in a disco bar in October 2014.

Associate Justice Marlene Gonzales-Sison, who penned the decision, dismissed the petition for review filed by Pemberton for lack of merit.

The killing of Laude sparked anger in the Philippines and reignited calls by left-wing groups and nationalists for an end to U.S. military presence in the country.

Pemberton had claimed Laude molested him in the motel room by pretending to be a woman and he had to defend his dignity, but that he had no intention to kill her.

He said Laude slapped him when he confronted her for pretending to be a woman.

Laude died from asphyxiation in the evening of October 11, 2014 following her meeting with Pemberton at a bar.

Gonzales-Sison, in her decision, said physical evidence contradicts Pemberton’s claim.

“As proven by the prosecution, Pemberton did not leave Laude merely unconscious, but ensured his death by submerging his head inside the toilet bowl,” it said. “Clearly, Pemberton intended the natural consequence of his wrongful act.”

The court also upheld the order for Pemberton to pay Laude’s heirs P4.32 million for loss of income and P30,000 exemplary damages, but raised the moral damages and civil indemnity to P75,000 each.

“Further, Pemberton shall pay interest at the rate of six percent (6%) per annum on all civil liability from the finality of this Decision until fully paid,” the decision said.

Rep. Harry Roque, who served as the Laude family’s private lawyer, welcomed the court’s decision, saying that “the fact that a member of the U.S. Marines was found guilty for breach of our criminal laws for the very first time is an affirmation of Philippine sovereignty.”

Pemberton, an anti-tank missile operator from New Bedford, Massachusetts, was one of thousands of American and Philippine military personnel who participated in joint exercises in the country in 2014.

He and a group of other Marines were on leave after the exercises and met Laude and her friends at a bar in Olongapo, a city known for its nightlife outside Subic Bay, a former U.S. Navy base. At least two witnesses testified that Laude was a sex worker.

Pemberton is detained at a detention facility in the Armed Forces of the Philippines headquarters in Camp Aguinaldo.