Laude kin reject P21-M settlement

MANILA, Philippines - The family of slain transgender Jeffrey “Jennifer” Laude will not agree to a settlement in the murder case against US Marine Lance Corporal Joseph Scott Pemberton.

As the trial proper before the Olongapo court started yesterday, Laude’s mother Julita and sister Malou went to the Department of Justice (DOJ) to protest their family’s exclusion by public prosecutors in the negotiation on the agreement.

“What we are fighting for is murder, not to downgrade the case. What they did to my child was gruesome. Just because we are poor doesn’t mean we can’t fight for justice,” Julita told reporters in Filipino.

“What we want is to see Pemberton in jail. I never said I would agree (to plea bargain). What I only said was that if we would be given even one million dollars, that would not be enough for us,” she stressed.

The family’s lawyer, UP law professor Harry Roque Jr., said it was Olongapo City Prosecutor Emilie delos Santos who was pushing for the P21-million settlement with Pemberton’s camp without consulting with the victim’s family.

“She was pushing for the plea bargain – that she would allow Pemberton to plead guilty to homicide but the civil aspect of the case will proceed. That’s not possible because the civil aspect is deemed instituted to the criminal case,” Roque, who was absent in the initial hearing, revealed.

The Laude family raised the issue on the plea bargain deal with Justice Secretary Leila de Lima.

In a two-page letter, they also complained about the supposed refusal of Delos Santos to allow Roque to participate in case conferences.

“First of all, as far as we know, we have the right under the Constitution to choose our own lawyer in whatever cases we face. This is why we don’t understand why the current public prosecutor does not allow our lawyer to defend us and make sure justice for the killing of Jennifer Laude would be served,” they said.

For this reason, they once again asked De Lima to replace Delos Santos and other members of the DOJ panel handling the murder case.

“The trial has started, but we are deeply concerned. We will only feel secure once we see our lawyer working well with the public prosecutors in defending our real interests to attain justice,” they appealed. – With Bebot Sison Jr., Ric Sapnu