Forensic expert backs doc's findings in Subic rape case
MANILA -- A pathologist who testified as an expert witness for the prosecution in the ongoing Subic rape case trial told the court the contusion sustained by the complainant in her genital area is consistent with that of sexual assault victims.
Dr. Raquel del Rosario Fortun said during her testimony in a Makati City court Tuesday that the contusion at both sides of the genital area of the 22-year-old woman who accused four US servicemen of rape was caused by blunt force.
It would be "unusual" for such contusion to appear when the sex is consensual, Fortun added.
Fortun's statement jibes with the medico-legal findings of Dr. Rolando Ortiz who conducted the examination on Nicole at the James Gordon Memorial Hospital in Subic Bay after the alleged rape took place.
The rape complainant, who took the witness stand for the first time on Thursday last week, identified Lance Corporal Daniel Smith as the US Marine who allegedly raped her inside a moving van at the Subic Bay free port on November 1 while Lance Corporal Keith Silkwood, Lance Corporal Dominic Duplantis, and Staff Sergeant Chad Carpentier cheered him on.
Fortun also said the "unusual tenderness" in the genital area of the complainant, whose court-appointed pseudonym is Nicole, and the dark red color of the contusion were consistent with recent injuries probably inflicted within one or two days.
Asked if the contusion could have been inflicted by another object, such as a condom, Fortun said it would not cause such injuries.
On the injuries in the left arm and knee of Nicole, Fortun agreed with Ortiz's findings that these were probably inflicted when force was applied using the hand.
She also said the method used to determine the presence of semen and seminal stains on the used condom and the underwear is "old and unreliable" and that it is only used in the country.
"The Florence test is a very, very old test to determine the presence of seminal stain. It was introduced by a Frenchman in 1896 and it is not used by modern laboratories at present," Fortun said of the method used by the PNP Crime Laboratory.
Reading from the book "Medical Examination" published in 1952, she said this kind of test was not "specific" and produced a positive result from vegetable, saliva, and mucous. Chemicals, pus, blood, and excrement may produce a reaction that might yield a negative result in such test.
She added the negative result for semen on the condom could have been due to other factors, such as if the man used a condom during the sexual activity, he ejaculated outside. Fortun said it is also possible he already underwent vasectomy or there is a dysfunction in the male reproductive system.
The defense objected to Fortun's testimony about the test and questioned her "bias" against the accused, pointing out that she is a member of the Child Protection Unit of the University of the Philippines (UP) whose mandate is to protect and promote the welfare and rights of victims of sexual abuse.
In Fortun's first appearance last week, the defense sought unsuccessfully to prevent her from testifying as an expert witness, saying that her experience as a forensic pathologist was more on the study of dead cells of human beings than of sexual abuse cases.
"How can she be an impartial witness when she is a member or consultant of that unit? Additionally, her citing of theories written in books about sexual assault cases cannot be examined since the authors were American and their interpretation of rape might be different from the interpretation of our Revised Penal Code," said Jose Justiniano, who serves as counsel for Silkwood.
The defense likewise questioned her perceived "bias" against the methods used by local doctors, adding that the test has proven reliable in the past and was even used as evidence in court. (AH/Sunnex)
Dr. Raquel del Rosario Fortun said during her testimony in a Makati City court Tuesday that the contusion at both sides of the genital area of the 22-year-old woman who accused four US servicemen of rape was caused by blunt force.
It would be "unusual" for such contusion to appear when the sex is consensual, Fortun added.
Fortun's statement jibes with the medico-legal findings of Dr. Rolando Ortiz who conducted the examination on Nicole at the James Gordon Memorial Hospital in Subic Bay after the alleged rape took place.
The rape complainant, who took the witness stand for the first time on Thursday last week, identified Lance Corporal Daniel Smith as the US Marine who allegedly raped her inside a moving van at the Subic Bay free port on November 1 while Lance Corporal Keith Silkwood, Lance Corporal Dominic Duplantis, and Staff Sergeant Chad Carpentier cheered him on.
Fortun also said the "unusual tenderness" in the genital area of the complainant, whose court-appointed pseudonym is Nicole, and the dark red color of the contusion were consistent with recent injuries probably inflicted within one or two days.
Asked if the contusion could have been inflicted by another object, such as a condom, Fortun said it would not cause such injuries.
On the injuries in the left arm and knee of Nicole, Fortun agreed with Ortiz's findings that these were probably inflicted when force was applied using the hand.
She also said the method used to determine the presence of semen and seminal stains on the used condom and the underwear is "old and unreliable" and that it is only used in the country.
"The Florence test is a very, very old test to determine the presence of seminal stain. It was introduced by a Frenchman in 1896 and it is not used by modern laboratories at present," Fortun said of the method used by the PNP Crime Laboratory.
Reading from the book "Medical Examination" published in 1952, she said this kind of test was not "specific" and produced a positive result from vegetable, saliva, and mucous. Chemicals, pus, blood, and excrement may produce a reaction that might yield a negative result in such test.
She added the negative result for semen on the condom could have been due to other factors, such as if the man used a condom during the sexual activity, he ejaculated outside. Fortun said it is also possible he already underwent vasectomy or there is a dysfunction in the male reproductive system.
The defense objected to Fortun's testimony about the test and questioned her "bias" against the accused, pointing out that she is a member of the Child Protection Unit of the University of the Philippines (UP) whose mandate is to protect and promote the welfare and rights of victims of sexual abuse.
In Fortun's first appearance last week, the defense sought unsuccessfully to prevent her from testifying as an expert witness, saying that her experience as a forensic pathologist was more on the study of dead cells of human beings than of sexual abuse cases.
"How can she be an impartial witness when she is a member or consultant of that unit? Additionally, her citing of theories written in books about sexual assault cases cannot be examined since the authors were American and their interpretation of rape might be different from the interpretation of our Revised Penal Code," said Jose Justiniano, who serves as counsel for Silkwood.
The defense likewise questioned her perceived "bias" against the methods used by local doctors, adding that the test has proven reliable in the past and was even used as evidence in court. (AH/Sunnex)
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