This story
was taken from Bulatlat, the Philippines's alternative weekly
newsmagazine (www.bulatlat.com).
Vol. VI, No. 21, July 6, 2006
Nicole Tells Her Story
BY JHONG DELA CRUZ 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 © 2006 Bulatlat
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Alipato Media Center Permission is granted to reprint or redistribute this article, provided its author/s and Bulatlat are properly credited and notified.
Posted 8:12 p.m. July 6, 2006