Supreme Court asked to hold oral arguments on DNA testing for Vizconde case

MANILA, Philippines - Convicted rapist and murderer Hubert Webb asked the Supreme Court yesterday to allow the DNA testing of semen taken from the body of Carmela Vizconde to prove that he did not rape and kill her.

In a motion for oral arguments, Demetrio Custodio Jr., Webb’s lawyer said his client’s case deserves thorough deliberations before the SC since it presents novel issues that would set a precedent and have profound repercussions in the country’s criminal justice system.

“Appellant Webb begs the indulgence of the Supreme Court and asks that he be given the chance to present his position that he has been denied his constitutional right to due process of law and is therefore entitled to an acquittal,” read the motion.

Custodio said the SC’s ruling in the case would not only decide Webb’s fate and those his co-accused, who have been behind bars for 15 years, but would also have far-reaching effects.

“There is no precedent for this in Philippine jurisprudence,” he said.

Webb’s case is a landmark one since rules and jurisprudence have only recently caught up with technology, particularly in the field of DNA ana-lysis as a method of solving crimes, he added.

Custodio said DNA testing, which was expected to lead to Webb’s acquittal, did not prosper after the National Bureau of Investigation reported the specimen from Carmela missing.

The government’s failure to produce the semen specimen is a denial of his constitutional right to due process, he added.

Custodio said Webb was treated unfairly and denied a complete defense against the charge against him.

“In disallowing the DNA examination, the trial court denied his singular piece of evidence that could have definitely established his innocence,” he said.

The trial court should have, at the outset, allowed DNA testing of the semen specimen, he added.

Full credence was given to the testimony of the prosecution’s star witness, Jessica Alfaro, who was a “perjured witness,” Custodio said.

Last April 20, the SC ordered the DNA testing of the specimen by the UP Natural Science and Research Institute upon Webb's request.

Webb was ordered to shoulder the expenses for the test and to strictly observe the confidentiality of the results.

During the trial and until the verdict was handed down in 2000, Webb had pushed for DNA test on the semen specimen taken from the body of Carmela.

It was only in 2007 when the SC promulgated rules admitting DNA test results as evidence in criminal cases.