Still seeking justice for his family's grim fate, Lauro Vizconde exhausts all resources available to him. It took the trial and appeal process in this case fifteen years. When the accused appealed the decision, the Court of Appeals (CA) affirmed the judgement of conviction by the RTC. I will continue to play that role as long as I live. The court also said that it was "possible for Alfaro to lie" on the details of the case. I got involved in the case after Webb told me Hubert, whose name was slowly cropping up in news reports as a prime suspect, was in the United States when the dastardly crime happened. At the end of February, the Bureau of Fire Protection held a parade featuring some of its trucks and equipment as well as new regular personnel: women firefighters. He also ordered the Secretary of Justice Leila de Lima to study the possibility of giving compensation to Webb and others. Powered by, Appendix: Case analysis: Supreme Courts rulings on Vizconde and Abadilla cases are contradictory, http://sc.judiciary.gov.ph/jurisprudence/2010/december2010/176389.htm, http://sc.judiciary.gov.ph/jurisprudence/2010/september2010/182555.htm, http://campaigns.ahrchk.net/abadilla5/docs/A5-FinalAppealPetition.pdf, http://campaigns.ahrchk.net/abadilla5/docs/A5-CAdecision.pdf. At any rate, Rameses de Jesus admitted that they were using the new car of Lenido Lumanog. For example, I was the first one to report the shooting of 16-year-old Maureen Hultman and her boyfriend by the son of former chief justice Claudio Teehankee in 1991 in my column at theInquirer, because the girls stepfather, Anders, a Swede, came to myIsumbongoffice at Radyo Veritas. Envy aliens who can avoid PH; pity Pinoys who are stuck here.
The Vizconde Massacre: God, Help Us! - sirasa.dixiesewing.com The Vizconde murder case, colloquially known as the Vizconde massacre, was the multiple homicide of members of the Vizconde family on June 30, 1991 at their residence at 80 Vinzons Street, BF Homes, Paraaque, Metro Manila, Philippines. Fax: +(852) 2698 6367, Copyright 2023 Asian Human Rights Commission. Sacaguing broke the guidelines in taking affidavits from witnesses. But Justice Conchita Carpio Morales, who concurred with the decision, wrote strongly against basing judgement on conjectures: Facts decide cases. That's all crap! As to the failure to present the forensic evidence and its subsequent loss, the SC held: the semen specimen taken from Carmela cannot possibly lie. Pray to them. Ateneo law professor Alan Paguia: "The order of release is questionable as it appears to be undemocratic.
SC acquits Hubert Webb, 6 others in Vizconde massacre Eighteen-year-old daughter Carmela was raped, and had 17 stab wounds.
The Vizconde massacre - my defining moment | Philstar.com De Lima said it was possible that it was Black Maria who was in the Vizconde home and not Jessica Alfaro, the NBI's star witness during the trial. But to Judge Amelita Tolentino of the Paranaque Regional Trial Court, the truth was the account of star witness Jessica Alfaro. Therefore, the applications of the SC on evaluating the defence of alibi of the accused have not been equally applied in these two cases. The Vizconde massacre, dubbed the crime of the 20th century, was my defining moment as a columnist and defender of the oppressed and those. Subscribe to INQUIRER PLUS to get access to The Philippine Daily Inquirer & other 70+ titles, share up to 5 gadgets, listen to the news, download as early as 4am & share articles on social media. Nos. Hell never return to the Philippines, said the Thai tourist whose cash was filched by Manila airport security personnel. Tolentino also found it hard to believe that Webb was working with a pesticide company because he was asthmatic and allergic to various substances. Their claims were corroborated by witnesses who are disinterested parties, their relatives and friends and documentary evidence. [56] According to De Lima, all the new witnesses passed the polygraph test. One of the important pieces of evidence, which I presented to the court later, was the copy of an invoice issued to Hubert Webb on coincidence of coincidences! vs. Raul de Leon et. But both the RTC and the CA rejected his defence ruling that his alibi cannot stand against Alfaros positive identification of him as the rapist and killer. He adds, this Court takes judicial notice of reported irregularities and tampering of passports in the years prior to the recent issuance by the Department of Foreign Affairs(DFA) of machine-readable passports. "I doubt that at this time, physical evidence will be available because a lapse of time has taken place, but that's the only way we can find the true killers." Run after Alfaro : Directed by Carlo J. Caparas. She did not show up at the NBI as a spontaneous witness (only after four years) bothered by her conscience. Of the 15 Justices, 7 voted for acquittal while four dissented and four Justices, including Carpio, did not participate.[27][28]. The people urging President Rodrigo Digong Duterte to run for vice president in the 2022 elections are making fun of him. Includes gruesome real photos from the crime scene. October 1, 1996 Judge Amelita Tolentino of the Paraaque RTC rejected 132 of the defense's 142 pieces of evidence. The SCs decision affirming the guilty verdict by the Regional Trial Court (RTC) of Quezon City on the Abadilla Five, the five men accused in the murder of police colonel Rolando Abadilla on June 13, 1996, is already the subject of a final appeal filed on October 8, 2010. On SPO2 Cesar Fortuna, the RTC, the CA and the SC, accepted the fact that he was at Camp Crame, but the SC affirmed the RTC and the CAs conjecture that it was not impossible for him to have gone to Katipunan road, Blue Ridge, which is relatively near Camp Crame when the shooting happened around 8.40 in the morning. This site uses cookies. The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) wishes to draw the attention of the Supreme Court (SC) of the Philippines to its recent decision on two well-known cases tried in the lower courts; the conviction in the Vizconde Massacre case was overturned while that of the Abadilla murder case was affirmed. Lauro Vizconde the husband of Estrellita and father of Carmela and Jennifer, was in the United State on business when the murders took place. I incurred the ire of the citizenry, including some of my fellow columnists in theInquirer,for my defense of Hubert. While the SC rejected Alfaros testimony being not a credible witness, it held Alejo still a credible witness despite the inconsistencies in his testimony. The Vizconde murder case, colloquially known as the Vizconde massacre, was the multiple homicide of members of the Vizconde family on June 30, 1991 at their residence at 80 Vinzons Street, BF Homes, Paraaque, Metro Manila, Philippines. Seven justices based its decision on the following points: Webb, citing Brady v. Maryland, said "that he is entitled to outright acquittal on the ground of violation of his right to due process given the States failure to produce on order of the Court either by negligence or willful suppression the semen specimen taken from Carmela." After the Mass, VACC founding chair Dante Jimenez urged Congress to initiate impeachment proceedings against the seven Supreme Court justices who either voted to acquit Webb and coaccused or abstained from voting last December. Once again, the SCs applications of jurisprudence on the admissibility of forensic evidence in criminal trial have not been equally applied. He and six others spent 15 years in jail. Firstly, like Alfaro, Alejo also received money and free accommodation from the persons who had interest in his testimony. "[29], The court maintained that for a person to be convicted there should not be "a reasonable, lingering doubt as to his guilt." This was how Lauro Vizcondes relatives summed it up on Thursday night after a Mass marking the 20th anniversary of the death of his wife Estrellita and daughters Carmela and Jennifer. Like Herbas, court records had also shown that Alejo has been receiving money and free accommodation from the Abadillas. Am I dismayed by the decision of the (Supreme Court)? Both Webb and del Toro could not describe in court what Hubert's work was, Tolentino said. The trial of the case having been long concluded, the requirements of the law may have been satisfied, but not the demands of justice. Secondly, Alfaros quality as a witness and her inconsistent, if not inherently unbelievable, testimony cannot be the positive identification that jurisprudence acknowledges as sufficient. The women were found dead with multiple stab wounds and no witnesses, murder weapons or motive have been uncovered. Suspicions, no matter how strong they are, must never sway judgment. [29], For the alibi to be established "the accused must prove by positive, clear, and satisfactory evidence that he was present at another place at the time of the perpetration of the crime, and that it was physically impossible for him to be at the scene of the crime". The case of the Vizconde Massacre took another direction only after four years, when Jessica Alfaro surfaced and became the case's star witness. The most significant topic that Ive ever written about and which I personally got involved in was the Vizconde massacre. Manila Times Special Report on the Vizconde Case, G.R. In their alibis, Joel de Jesus claimed he was driving his passenger tricycle in Fairview, Quezon City the whole day; for SPO2 Cesar Fortuna, he was at Camp Crame (headquarters of the Philippine National Police, PNP) for official business and his presence was also corroborated by two police officials whom he had transacted business with; for Augusto Santos, he was at the Jose Fabella Hospital in Sta. Needless to say, were unpopular with the PNP and other government agencies that citizens transact business with. De Lima also said seven new witnesses claimed they saw Webb in the country during the months of April, May and June 1991. She also testified that Biong received money at a house that she later learned belonged to then Paraaque Congressman Freddie Webb; the Webb family's maids, Mila Gaviola and Nerissa Rosales, who both testified that Hubert Webb was at home on June 30, 1991. In the said stockroom, there is a small door going to Hubert's room and in that door there is a small opening where she used to see Hubert and his friends sniffing on something.
Vizconde murders - Wikipedia Even if we were denied justice, I consoled them that at least people already know what really happened, he said. On June 30, 1991, Estrellita Vizconde and her two daughters: Carmela and Jennifer, were found lifeless inside their home in Paraaque.
No. I stood my ground because I had all the facts in my hand. It held that the acquittal of their co-accused does not necessarily benefit the appellants. Philstar.com is one of the most vibrant, opinionated, discerning communities of readers on cyberspace. Biong was released from jail on November 30, 2010, after serving his sentence. Alfaro said that when she went back to the house, she saw the bodies of Estrellita and Jennifer on the bed and Webb raping Carmela on the floor. The fight is not over. Alfaro testified that as Webb followed Carmela into the dining room, she decided to step outside for a smoke. Please try again. The defense questioned Alfaro's credibility noting that she admitted to being under the influence of drugs when she allegedly witnessed the crime and had made inconsistent statements on her two affidavits. Executive M/Sgt. I also updated them on the new twist in the investigation. 185123/G.R. [15] The accused alleged that by rejecting 132 of the 142 pieces of evidence, Tolentino had set the tone for their conviction. It is time to heal the past. Webb presented certifications from the U.S. Immigration but he failed to submit as evidence in court the original copy of his passport with immigration entry stamped on it. ), Among evidence that was not admitted by Judge Tolentino, was the note verbale from the United States Embassy in Manila claiming that Webb entered the United States in March 1991 and left in October 1992. The SC also held that it was possible for Alfaro to know the details about the Vizconde killings because she had prior access to the details that the investigators knew of the case.
Vizconde Massacre Case - Pinoy Stories 'Hubert Webb was in PH during Vizconde massacre' - ABS-CBN News ABADILLA MURDER CASE: This case is about the murder of Rolando Abadilla, a police colonel during Marcos regime, at 8:30 on June 13, 1996 at the Katipunan Avenue, Quezon City. A news report on Thursday in Business Mirror that headlined Senate grills defense brass on plans for EDCA expansion, sites raised much curiosity for its sheer lack of detailed information. 182555/G.R. The unconstitutionality of prior restraint. September 7, 2010http://sc.judiciary.gov.ph/jurisprudence/2010/september2010/182555.htm The term dirty politics is appropriate for that kind of set-up. They are Lenido Lumanog, Augusto Santos, Senior Police Officer 2 (SPO2) Cesar Fortuna, Rameses de Jesus and Joel de Jesus. Many of the stories in my columns in previous newspapers were complaints from citizens. On April this year, the Webbs filed an urgent motion to acquit when they found out that the NBI no longer has custody of the specimen that was taken from the body of the rape victim, Carmela Visconde. Let the love of God prevail.