MANILA – LGBT (lesbians, gay, bisexuals, transgender) rights advocates are criticizing the Olongapo City Regional Trial Court for coming out with the verdict on the Jennifer Laude slay case that opens the already vulnerable sector to more abuse.
US Marine Lance Corporal Joseph Scott Pemberton was found guilty of homicide and was sentenced by Olongapo City RTC Branch 74 Judge Roline Jinez-Jabalde to 6 to 12 years imprisonment.
Pemberton was originally charged with murder before the court, but this was downgraded to homicide due to the absence of any aggravating circumstance.
The court said it cannot appreciate the attendant circumstance of treachery, which is a ground for murder. The two other attendant circumstances for murder – abuse of superior strength and cruelty – were also not proven by the prosecution, the court added.
The court likewise cited two mitigating circumstances in the Laude slay.
Under the Indeterminate Sentence Law, if there are two or more mitigating circumstance and no aggravating circumstance, penalty lower in degree shall be the one imposed.
One of the mitigating circumstances counted in favor of Pemberton was the so-called ''passion and obfuscation."
The court ruled that Pemberton was the ''more plausible suspect'' ''because he was the only person who has the motive to kill Laude'' after ''he was deceived by Laude into believing that he was a woman, when in fact he was a man when he offered him sex for pay."
''Pemberton could have been so excited and sexually aroused and started reaching for Laude's vagina, hoping to consummate the sexual act and satisfy his sexual desire. When he felt something weird which should not have been there, he realized what was on top of him was a man,'' the court said.
''He was so disgusted and repulsed with what he discovered. He found the situation so revolting and despicable. This overcame his reason and self-control."
CHILLING EFFECT
For Bemz Benedito, chair of pro-LGBT rights group Ladlad, this decision has created a chilling effect for members of the LGBT community.
''I warned my fellow transgender sisters and brothers that this decision of the court also sets a dangerous implication and precedent to have mitigating circumstance due to the discovery of one's sexual partner's gender identity and expression. This makes us all more vulnerable and easy targets of hate crimes and bigotry related violence,'' Benedito said.
Jacob Walse-Dominguez, a San Francisco-based Filipino who actively participates in discussions of LGBT issues, said the RTC decision puts members of the LGBT community in a vulnerable position.
''My problem with this sexist and transphobic crediting is that it also creates jurisprudence for hate crimes in this country. The PH has no hate crime law yet, and if any person commits a hate crime against LGBTQs, we are essentially saying it is okay, that you can plead for a lower sentence just like Laude vs. Pemberton,'' Dominguez told ABS-CBNnews.com.
''This decision is saying that being transgender is deserving of being murdered especially since one has 'fooled' a man into sex with her.''
Dominguez argued that studies have shown that transgender folk's gender identity does not match their biologically assigned gender. Thus, he said it is possible that Jennifer had no intention to deceive Pemberton because she viewed herself as a real woman.
''This is prejudice moving within our own justice system. We cannot count on our country's laws to protect us or hold our honor,'' he said.
''Jennifer took on the gender expression of a woman because that is her gender identity. If she was still alive and we ask her 'if your physical genitalia was not considered to be inherently male or female, what do you identify as?' She would definitely say female. Laude lived as a female and acted as female because in her eyes she was one, and tried to live it out to the fullest extent this society would let her.''
Laude family lawyer Harry Roque agreed, saying the court ruling sends a wrong message to the public.
"It sends a message to the public that it's okay to commit hate crimes against LGBTs because if you suffer from a mistaken belief that a woman is in fact a man and you kill him, you'll be entitled to lesser penalty. That to me is so bad, so objectionable," Roque told ANC's Headstart.
Roque said they are studying their options to avert the possible damaging effects that could result from this ruling.
NO TREACHERY, ABUSE, CRUELTY
In her decision, Judge Ginez-Jabalde said the attendant circumstances of treachery, abuse of superior strength and cruelty were not satisfied by the prosecution.
The court said the prosecution failed to adequately describe to the court how Pemberton made use of his strength in killing Laude.
''Abuse of superior strength is not present when killing was unplanned and not premeditated, the event was not planned and not deliberated. Pemberton did not know Laude in the first place,'' the court said.
Roque said this does not make sense. ''What do they call that killing if not cruel?" he asked.
''He's a trained Marine as against a transgender, for crying out loud! I don't see why the judge did not see the [abuse] of superior strength,'' he added.
Roque added that treachery was definitely present when Pemberton choked Laude with the latter's face slumped in the toilet bowl.
The verdict handed down on Pemberton was bittersweet for the Laude family, who was glad that the US Marine was found guilty but worried that US intervention might snatch justice away from their hands.
source: www.abs-cbnnews.com
