A Philippine court on Tuesday convicted a US Marine of killing a Filipino last year after he discovered she was a transgender woman in a hotel in the Philippines while he was on a break after participating in joint military exercises in the country.
Lance Cpl. Joseph Scott Pemberton was convicted of homicide by first strangling Jennifer Laude and then dunking her head into a toilet bowl in the hotel they had checked into after meeting in a disco bar in Olongapo City, northwest of Manila. He was sentenced to 6 to 12 years in jail, with time already spent in detention credited, court clerk Gerry Gruspe said.
As of press time on Tuesday, Philippine police officials have yet to take custody of Pemberton In the decision, Regional Trial Court Judge Roline Ginez-Jabalde ordered Pemberton jailed at the New Bilibid Prison in Muntinlupa City.
There were attempts to question the decision on where Pemberton should be committed using the provisions of the Visiting Forces Agreement (VFA) signed in 1998 by the US and the Philippines.
Laude’s mother, Julita, said that while she was happy the verdict detailed everything that had transpired, she was not pleased with the jail term because she had hoped Pemberton would be found guilty of murder, a more serious crime than homicide.
“But the important thing is he will be jailed,” she said, crying. “My son’s life is not wasted.”
Outside the courthouse, a small number of left-wing activists rejoiced but warned that they would closely watch to ensure Pemberton is detained in a Philippine jail, as the judge ordered.
The October 11, 2014, 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 US is reasserting its dominance in Asia and Manila has turned to Washington for support, amid an escalating territorial dispute with China.
Pemberton, an anti-tank missile operator from New Bedford, Massachusetts, was one of thousands of American and Philippine military personnel who participated in a joint exercise last year. He and a group of other Marines were on leave after the exercise and met Laude and her friends at a bar in Olongapo, a city known for its nightlife located outside Subic Bay, a former US naval base. At least two witnesses testified that Laude was a sex worker.
The case also revived a debate over which government should have custody of US military personnel who run afoul of local laws under a VFA.
The agreement, which allows US forces to conduct military exercises in the Philippines, says that the Philippines can prosecute American service members, but that the US has custody over them “from the commission of the offense until completion of all judicial proceedings.”
However, the Philippine Supreme Court ruled in 2009 that convicted US personnel must serve their sentences in the Philippines.