CA orders Olongapo judge to answer ‘Nicole’ charge
By Tetch Torres - INQ7.net
THE COURT of Appeals has ordered an Olongapo judge to respond to allegations by a Flipina who accused four US servicemen of rape that he abused his discretion when he refused to include as an accused the Filipino driver of the van where the crime allegedly took place.
A resolution issued by Associate Justice Regalado Maambong ordered Judge Renato Dilag of the Olongapo regional trial court to file in 10 days his comment on a petition for review filed by the victim through her lawyer Evalyn Ursua and the panel of public prosecutors from the Department of Justice (DoJ).
The rape case against Lance Corporals Daniel John Smith, Keith Garin Silkwood, Dominic Philip Duplantis and Staff Sergeant Chad Brian Carpentier was first raffled off to the sala of Dilag.
Soriano was the driver of the Starex van used by the four US marines on Nov. 1, 2005 at the Subic Bay Freeport where the alleged crime took place.
In his testimony to Subic investigators, Soriano said the victim, who has been identified in media as "Nicole," was a victim of gang rape.
Soriano then executed another affidavit denying that there was gang rape and that he was only forced to issue his first affidavit.
Soriano’s second affidavit prompted prosecutors to file a motion that sought the inclusion of the driver as one of the accused.
But Dilag not only dismissed the prosecutor's motion but cleared Soriano.
He also dismissed the subsequent appeal, which prompted the prosecution to elevate the matter to the Court of Appeals.
It took time for the Appellate Court to rule on the petition, as the court required Ursua to correct the deficiency of her appeal, which did not have the confirmation of the Office of the Solicitor General.
After acquiring the solicitor general’s confirmation, the court acted on the petition.
Soriano will be presented as a "hostile witness" for the victim, according to Ursua.
She said the public prosecutor, led by Senior State Prosecutor Emelie Delos Santos, had been working on Soriano to testify.
The rape trial before Branch 139 of the Makati City regional trial court will resume Thursday, with the prosecution putting the victim on the witness stand for the first time.
THE COURT of Appeals has ordered an Olongapo judge to respond to allegations by a Flipina who accused four US servicemen of rape that he abused his discretion when he refused to include as an accused the Filipino driver of the van where the crime allegedly took place.
A resolution issued by Associate Justice Regalado Maambong ordered Judge Renato Dilag of the Olongapo regional trial court to file in 10 days his comment on a petition for review filed by the victim through her lawyer Evalyn Ursua and the panel of public prosecutors from the Department of Justice (DoJ).
The rape case against Lance Corporals Daniel John Smith, Keith Garin Silkwood, Dominic Philip Duplantis and Staff Sergeant Chad Brian Carpentier was first raffled off to the sala of Dilag.
Soriano was the driver of the Starex van used by the four US marines on Nov. 1, 2005 at the Subic Bay Freeport where the alleged crime took place.
In his testimony to Subic investigators, Soriano said the victim, who has been identified in media as "Nicole," was a victim of gang rape.
Soriano then executed another affidavit denying that there was gang rape and that he was only forced to issue his first affidavit.
Soriano’s second affidavit prompted prosecutors to file a motion that sought the inclusion of the driver as one of the accused.
But Dilag not only dismissed the prosecutor's motion but cleared Soriano.
He also dismissed the subsequent appeal, which prompted the prosecution to elevate the matter to the Court of Appeals.
It took time for the Appellate Court to rule on the petition, as the court required Ursua to correct the deficiency of her appeal, which did not have the confirmation of the Office of the Solicitor General.
After acquiring the solicitor general’s confirmation, the court acted on the petition.
Soriano will be presented as a "hostile witness" for the victim, according to Ursua.
She said the public prosecutor, led by Senior State Prosecutor Emelie Delos Santos, had been working on Soriano to testify.
The rape trial before Branch 139 of the Makati City regional trial court will resume Thursday, with the prosecution putting the victim on the witness stand for the first time.
posted by OlongapoCity Zambales at
5:03 PM
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