"A U.S. Marine has asked a Philippine court to reverse his
conviction in the killing of a transgender Filipino and sought a bail
and a reduction of his six to 12-year jail term, his lawyer said
Wednesday.
Lawyer Rowena Garcia-Flores said she would insist that
her client, Lance Cpl. Joseph Scott Pemberton, did not kill Jennifer
Laude in a motel room after they met in a disco bar in October 2014 and
that his sentence should be eased because he surrendered to authorities. In
December a judge convicted Pemberton of homicide, not the more serious
charge of murder as prosecutors sought — and sentenced him to a lighter
jail term than what the victim's family sought. The regional trial
court judge in Olongapo city, northwest of Manila, said she downgraded
the charge because conditions such as cruelty and treachery had not been
proven. The court will start to hear Pemberton's appeal on Thursday. "We're
going for an acquittal," Flores said by telephone. "He defended himself
because he felt he was being conned but he did not kill Laude." In
case the court upholds the conviction, Flores said she and other
defense lawyers asked the court to consider easing Pemberton's sentence
because he surrendered to authorities and that he had "no intention to
commit so grave a wrong." The killing sparked anger in the
Philippines and reignited calls by left-wing groups and nationalists for
an end to America's military presence in the country at a time when the
U.S. is reasserting its dominance in Asia and Manila has turned to
Washington for support amid an escalating territorial dispute with
China.........The
emotional case has sparked concerns about special treatment for visiting
American forces, and left-wing activists have called on the government
to fight Pemberton's appeal.
Another Marine, Lance Cpl. Daniel
Smith, was found guilty and sentenced to life in prison on charges of
raping a Filipino woman in 2005. He was held at the U.S. Embassy in
Manila until a Philippine appeals court overturned his conviction in
2009, allowing him to leave the country amid anti-U.S. protests. "If
we allow Pemberton's conviction to be reversed or reduce his sentence,
this will send a wrong message to U.S. soldiers: That they can commit
crimes and get away with it," left-wing activist Renato Reyes said."
http://www.marinecorpstimes.com/story/military/2016/01/06/marine-convicted-killing-transgender-filipino-appeals/78345118/