Pemberton appeals conviction in Laude slay case

Convicted US Lance Corporal Joseph Scott Pemberton has filed a motion for reconsideration before the Court of Appeals (CA) to reverse his homicide conviction in the death of transgender Jeffrey Laude in Olongapo City in 2014.

Pemberton was found guilty of killing Laude inside a bathroom of Celzone Lodge in Olongapo on Oct. 11, 2014.

Pemberton’s legal counsel Rowena Garcia Flores said they submitted the 35-page motion last April 26.

In the motion, Pemberton told the CA that in the event that it affirms the homicide verdict, it would appreciate the privileged mitigating circumstance of incomplete selfdefense and the ordinary mitigating circumstances of voluntary surrender and no intention to commit so grave a wrong be appreciated in the determination of the imposable penalty.

It also asked the appellate court to reduce the amount of damages for “loss of income” awarded to the family of Laude to less or equal to the current minimum wage in Zambales, which is P349 a day, and delete the award of exemplary damages.

The Pemberton camp believes the CA committed a grave error when it did not require the prosecution to prove that the crime of homicide was committed beyond reasonable doubt, and shifted the burden to the US Marine to prove his innocence.

Pemberton testified in court that he did not kill Laude and that he was alive when the US Marine left the room.

They also alleged that the CA “cherry-picked” its evidence in order to sustain the conviction against Pemberton.

It also pointed out that the American soldier felt violated when Laude, a 26-year-old veteran sex worker, pretended to be a woman and performed sexual acts on him.

“There is no dispute as to the fact that Laude violated Pemberton’s rights. Laude misrepresented himself to be a woman. Without Pemberton’s complete consent, Laude kissed and caressed Pemberton’s entire body and performed oral sex on him twice. Pemberton felt raped,” they said in their motion.

The camp of Pemberton said that the tenor of the CA decision made it appear that the then 19-year-old American soldier was evil for killing Laude. “Certainly, our laws recognize that even men can be raped, sexually abused and molested.”

They also pointed out that in the sworn statements of Laude’s sister Marilou, bellboy Elias Gallamos and Laude’s friend Mark Clarence Gelviro a.k.a. Barbie, they described the last man they saw with Laude as someone wearing a blue and white colored shirt, black shorts, between 5’8” to 5’10” tall, about 25-30 years old, of medium build, white complexion and with short hair, while Pemberton was wearing a black shirt and khaki pants.