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Tuesday, September 12, 2006
US soldier denies raping Nicole
MANILA -- A US Marine charged with raping a 22-year-old Filipino woman last year inside a former US naval base denied the charge in court Monday but admitted having consensual sex with the complainant.
"It's not true Sir because I did not rape anybody. Up to now I've been trying to figure out why she would charge me," said accused Lance Corporal Daniel Smith during his testimony at Branch 139 of the Makati Regional Trial Court (RTC).
He added she consented to have sex with him and was a "willing participant" verbally and physically.
Smith also denied that his colleagues were cheering him on while he allegedly raped her, claiming all he heard inside the van were "normal drunken laughter." He said he didn't pay attention to his friends because he and the complainant were having sex by then.
He also said she was in control of herself contrary to the prosecution's claim that she was too drunk to give her consent.
The prosecution claimed that Smith raped the woman while his colleagues, Staff Sergeant Chad Carpentier and Lance Corporals Dominic Duplantis and Keith Silkwood, egged him on.
His testimony heralded the start of the defense's presentation of its own set of evidence and witnesses to support their arguments that no rape took place on the night of November 1, 2005 inside the Subic Bay Freeport.
Testifying for close to four hours, Smith recounted how he first met the complainant, given the pseudonym "Nicole" by the court to hide her identity, at the Neptune Bar located inside the free port. He, Duplantis, and Silkwood went to the bar on the night of the alleged incident.
He said he saw Nicole inside the bar and after he introduced himself he asked her if they could sit down. "I am not sure of our entire conversation at the time but I think it's about getting to know each other," answered Smith when asked by defense counsel Ricardo Diaz.
After talking for a while, he said they danced for about 15 minutes and when they returned to the table where they were earlier seated, Nicole sat on his lap and they started kissing.
"After she sat on my lap, she asked if she could kiss me and when I said yes we started kissing each other," said Smith, adding they were even giggling because of what they were doing despite the people around.
It was at that point that he saw Carpentier at the bar's door reminding the servicemen inside that they needed to be back at their ship, the amphibious assault ship USS Essex docked at the free port's Alava Pier, before midnight.
"When I told her that I had to be back to the ship by 12, she seemed disappointed and asked if I could stay a little bit longer. She's a little upset so I asked her if she would go for a short ride," said Smith, adding that they then walked outside the bar towards the waiting van that was hired to ferry the Americans around during their free time.
He said that when he opened the door of the van, Nicole got inside went straight to the backseat while he sat beside her. Carpentier sat beside the driver while Duplantis and Silkwood sat in the middle portion of the van.
Inside the vehicle, he said they started kissing again although he added that this time it was he who initiated the act. "We have pretty minimal conversation inside and then we started kissing then I jokingly told her 'Do you want to have sex with me right here' and she said yes," he said, adding that he started to undress while she was also doing the same to herself.
He likewise told the court that Nicole even assisted him in putting the condom on and in allowing him to penetrate her. "She assisted me in entering her and in getting into position so that I could enter her," he added.
But their intercourse was interrupted, he further said, after about three minutes when the van stopped. Nicole asked him "Are you already done?" when he "pulled" out.
Smith told the court she was not making any fuss during that time and the only time he saw her agitated was when he asked her to hurry up as they neared the gate of the pier. He said he was in a hurry to get to the ship on time.
"She was screaming, saying that she was not a bitch," he said, adding that to pacify her, he told her he would be come back to the bar the next day and that they could see each other there.
He later said he was disappointed when he did not see her at the bar the next day when he returned, adding that even though he could not remember her name his first impression of her was "she was nice and that at the time, she did seem to like me."
Smith's testimony, according to Diaz, effectively debunked the prosecution's argument. Diaz said Smith was "very sincere, honest, and straightforward" in his testimony.
"His testimony robbed the prosecution of their argument that there was rape and coupled with the physical evidence, which is consistent with his testimony, I think he is more consistent than the complainant."
Diaz also cited the contradiction that Smith pointed to in the prosecution's presentation of the report made by US Naval Criminal Investigative Service (NCIS) special agent Guy Papageorge, including the numbers of beers he imbibed inside the bar, the time they spent inside the bar, and the statement that the other accused were cheering him on while Smith and Nicole were having intercourse.
"I think I am misquoted," said Smith when asked by Prosecutor Nolibien Quiambao during the cross-examination.
Nicole's lawyer Evelyn Ursua said they expected that Smith's version of the incident would contradict her client's.
"The question is why would Nicole lie and drag the whole Filipino nation and her family if what she is saying is not true," said Ursua, adding that what gives her the strength to go on despite the offers of compromises to her family is her quest for justice.
Set to testify on Tuesday is Lance Corporal Justin Michael Bamberger, who like the accused, was a member of the Okinawa Japan-based 31st Marine Expeditionary Force that conducted training exercises with Filipino soldiers prior to the alleged incident.
The controversial case is seen is a test of the 1998 RP-US Visiting Forces Agreement (VFA) that governs the conduct and treatment of US military personnel when participating in joint training exercises with their Filipino counterparts in the Philippines.
Militant groups have staged protests over the case while several lawmakers called for the abrogation of the defense treaty. (AH/Sunnex)
(September 12, 2006 issue)
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