By Ferdinand Fabella
In a decision televised live nationwide, three other US marines and their Filipino driver were acquitted of complicity after a long, emotional trial that resurrected controversies linked to the US military presence in the Philippines.
The case has tested a joint military pact that paved the way for US counterterrorism training credited with helping local forces make gains against Muslim extremists in the restive south.
“We laud the triumph of impartial justice,” said Ignacio Bunye, spokesman for President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo. “The court maintained an even keel despite the tremendous pressures upon the bench. We have shown the world that due process is a hallmark of Philippine democracy.
“The outcome of this case will not in any way affect Philippine-US relations for it is not about diplomatic relations but about universal justice and the rule of law.”
A 23-year-old Filipina, known publicly by her pseudonym “Nicole,” accused Smith of sexually assaulting her while she was drunk last Nov. 1, with Staff Sgt. Chad Carpentier, Lance Cpl. Keith Silkwood, and Lance Cpl. Dominic Duplantis allegedly cheering him on.
Smith, 21, from St. Louis, Missouri, testified that the sex was consensual. Instead, he became the first American soldier to be convicted of wrongdoing since the Senate ordered US bases shut down in the early 1990s and joint training was established under a treaty, the Visiting Forces Agreement, in 1998.
“I’m sad that three were acquitted, but I’m also happy because one was convicted,” Nicole told ABS-CBN television in a telephone interview.
Smith was ordered to pay the woman P100,000 ($2,000) in compensatory and moral damages.
“He was the one who was on top of the complainant, who resisted his kisses, pushed him and fought him back until she lost consciousness because of alcoholic drinks she had taken,” said the lengthy decision by Judge Benjamin Pozon of the Makati Regional Trial Court, read by a court employee.
Pozon said the severe penalty was aimed “to protect women against the unbridled bestiality of persons who cannot control their libidinous proclivity.”
The verdict said Nicole was so intoxicated that she could not have consented to sex, pointing to testimony that Smith carried her to a van where the rape happened.
Some cheers and applause broke out in the courtroom, and Nicole began weeping as supporters embraced her.
“We’re very happy. We laud Judge Pozon for showing courage and judicial independence,” the woman’s lawyer, Evalyn Ursua, said. “It is a moral victory in addition to the legal victory.”
It was unclear whether Smith would serve the sentence in the Philippines or elsewhere.
Pozon ordered that Smith be held in the Makati City jail while the government and the US embassy in Manila negotiated where he would serve his sentence.
His lawyer, Ricardo Diaz, said he would appeal.
Makati police wrestled Smith away from American security men who tried to take him out through another door in the courtroom, presumably back to the US embassy.
The other marines, who backed Smith’s testimony and denied any wrongdoing, were immediately freed. Hours later, they were flown in a private six-seater Lear Jet to Okinawa, Japan.
An American embassy statement assured the public that the US would continue to comply with its Visiting Forces Agreement with the Philippines.
“This has been a difficult and emotional matter for all involved and for their families and friends. The US government has adhered throughout to the terms of the VFA which provides the framework for US-Philippines cooperation on legal cases involving US service members,” the statement said.
Under the terms of the agreement, the US may keep custody of Smith even during the appeal, Justice Secretary Raul Gonzalez said. He said the Americans wanted to ship him to Okinawa too.
“But I am objecting to that. I have made my position known because the US is hinting that they will bring him to Okinawa for another trial,” he said.
Earlier, about 100 protesters gathered outside the courthouse, chanting and singing “Bayan Ko.” They waved a banner that read “Justice for Nicole, justice for our nation. Scrap VFA.”
Left-wing activists have rallied against the pact, saying it favored Washington.
As a van dropped the Americans off and they were escorted by 50 helmeted riot police toward the court, members of a women’s group came up from behind yelling, “Convict, convict! Justice, justice!” as they raised anti-US posters.
The incident happened inside a moving van at the former US naval base at Subic Bay after a night of drinking with Smith, Nicole testified. The marines had just finished a counterterrorism exercise.
Ursua had said conviction would be “a permanent blot on the record of the US servicemen in the Philippines” and would set a precedent, while acquittal would have made it difficult for other women to seek justice.
In his ruling, Pozon cited 14 pieces of circumstantial evidence that proved Smith raped Nicole.
These included Nicole’s vaginal injuries and bruises on her legs and arms, the testimony of prosecution witnesses who saw Smith carrying the unconscious Nicole out of the Neptune Bar, and Smith’s admission that he had sex with the complainant.
“Accused Smith’s claim [of consensual sex] does not inspire belief,” the judge said. “If the complainant consented, why should she resist him? If it were true, why would she charge him with rape?”
In a press conference after the verdict was read, June Lopez, Nicole’s psychiatrist, said the complainant was overwhelmed by the decision and chose not to face the media.
“She kept saying, ‘Thank you Lord.’ They are overwhelmed so let’s give them a chance to settle down,” Lopez said of Nicole and her mother.
In the House, Majority Leader Prospero Nograles welcomed the verdict against Smith and hoped the incident would not hurt Philippine-American relations.
But party-list Rep. Liza Maza of the women’s group Gabriela said she was disappointed by the acquittal of Smith’s alleged accomplices, saying the verdict was a “Solomonic political compromise because it is clear that the act of one is the act of all.”
Bayan Muna Rep. Satur Ocampo said the public must remain watchful because the verdict could be reversed on appeal. With Joyce Pangco Pañares, Rey E. Requejo, Vito Barcelo, Joel M. Sy Egco, AP
Other Links:1. U.S. Marine Guilty Of Rape In Philippines
2. Philippine Court Finds US Marine Guilty of Rape, Acquits 3 Others
3. U.S. marine sentenced to 40 years for rape in Philippines
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