Nicole Tells Her
Story
BY JHONG DELA CRUZ
Posted 8:12 p.m. July 6, 2006
In between sobs and
tears, Subic rape victim Nicole told her story.
Seemingly nervous
and at the brink of tears at the start of her testimony, Nicole was able
to recall and narrate the events leading to the alleged November 1 rape
incident that implicated four U.S. soldiers, who participated in joint
military exercises last year.
Evalyn Ursua,
Nicole’s lawyer, praised the victim for showing her inner strength
during the four-hour trial.
"The flow went
through as it should be, I think she was strong, but the real test for
her is during the cross examination by the defense panel," she said,
referring to the continuation of her client's testimony tomorrow at the
sala of Judge Benjamin Pozon, Branch 139 of the Makati Regional Trial
Court.
Nicole, who lived
in Zamboanga City before moving to Manila for the trial, broke into
tears when asked how her family treated U.S. soldiers who were the main
patrons of their canteen. A ten-minute break was called to enable her to
regain her composure.
"Hindi na sila iba
sa amin, pinapakita namin na ka-pamilya na namin sila," (We treat them
as family.) she said after the break.
"Pinapahalagahan
namin sila para hindi sila ma-homesick," (We treat them well so they
won’t feel homesick.) she said.
She revealed that
she has a boyfriend, Brian Goodrich, a U.S. soldier with the 12th
Marines Operations Platoon based in Okinawa, Japan.
Nicole said Carlos
Ocasio and Chris Mills, from the U.S. Navy, invited her and her two
half-sisters to take a vacation at Subic Bay Freeport in Zambales. She
said that the two are friends of the family adding that they met them
last July 2005.
A week before they
went to Subic, she said that she talked with Goodrich on the phone.
Nicole said that when she told Goodrich about their planned vacation, he
told her it was okay and to take care.
Nicole, together
with her two half sisters and two brothers, who joined them from Manila,
visited Subic's more popular tourist sites like Ocean Adventure, Subic
Safari and Bat Kingdom during their four-day vacation arranged by Ocacio
and Mills.
Nicole said that
the rape incident took place on the third day, Nov. 1. In the courtroom,
she positively identified Lance Corporal Daniel Smith as the
perpetrator.
Smith was said to
have been cheered by Lance Corporal Dominic Duplantis, Keith Silkwood
and Staff Sergeant Chad Carpentier during the sexual assault inside a
rented van.
Ursua said the rape
victim's testimony will be opened to the public tomorrow in response to
criticisms that Nicole is being elusive.
To prepare Nicole
for the cross examination tomorrow, Ursua said she told her client to
remain calm and not to be distracted by the “theatrics” of the defense
panel.
Nicole is being
assisted by a therapist, members of Task Force Subic Rape, and Gabriela.
Bulatlat
BACK TO
TOP ■
PRINTER-FRIENDLY VERSION ■
COMMENT
© 2006 Bulatlat
■
Alipato Media Center
Permission is granted to reprint or redistribute this article, provided
its author/s and Bulatlat are properly credited and notified.