Allegations vs SC justice are 'hearsay' — SC spokesman

The Supreme Court is not dignifying allegations that one of its magistrates is lobbying for the acquittal of Hubert Webb, who was convicted by a regional trial court in 2000 for the Vizconde massacre in 1991. At a news briefing on Friday, SC administrator and spokesman Jose Midas Marquez said the allegations against the magistrate are merely "hearsay" and should be substantiated first. Lauro Vizconde, who lost his wife and two daughters in the massacre, earlier claimed an SC magistrate told him that a justice is convincing fellow members of the bench to clear Webb. In a phone interview with GMANews.TV on Friday, Vizconde identified the magistrate as Senior Associate Justice Antonio Carpio. "It's Justice Carpio. I am only telling the truth," Vizconde said. However, he declined to identify the other magistrate who fed him the information that Carpio is allegedly lobbying for Webb's acquittal. Carpio had once testified in the Vizconde massacre trial when it was still being handled by the Paranaque Regional Trial Court Branch 274. That was long before Carpio was named to the high court. At that time, Carpio was the chief legal counsel of former President Fidel Ramos. The trial court, presided by Judge Amelita Tolentino, convicted Webb and six others in January 2000. The Court of Appeals upheld the conviction in December 2005. Webb later asked the Supreme Court to review the case in 2007. When the matter was brought to the high tribunal, Carpio inhibited himself because he once testified in the trial. 'Hearsay' At the SC briefing, Marquez said the information Vizconde got was just hearsay because it was just passed on to him by someone else. "The allegation alone says that it is hearsay," said Marquez. He likewise brushed aside speculations that Vizconde's allegation will pressure the court into deciding in favor of Vizconde, or against Webb. "I don't think the justices will be influenced by this unsubstantiated allegation. You can expect that individual justices will be ruling in their appreciation of the facts. I don't think they will be influenced one way or the other by this allegation of Mr. Vizconde," Marquez added. Ethics case? He added that the court has an Ethics and Ethical Standards Committee, which can address Vizconde's grievances against any member of the court. "These are serious allegations which will have to be proven. This cannot be proven by hearsay," he added. Marquez then urged the public to refrain from issuing statements pertaining to the case, considering that court is set to rule on the matter anytime soon. "We all know that this case is about to be resolved. The court, anytime, will be deciding this case, so we hope that parties will refrain from coming out with unsubstantiated allegations," he said. Carpio's daughter On Friday, Carpio's daughter, Audrey N. Carpio, wrote an article on the Philippine Star describing Hubert Webb's struggle inside the New Bilibid Prison. The article mentioned that Webb was "incarcerated for 15 years for a crime... he could not have possibly committed." "Young people are outraged that the wheels of justice could take such an insidious turn and convict an innocent man, consequently letting the real perpetrators roam free," said the article. Addressing the matter, Marquez said Audrey was not a lawyer and was not governed by the Code of Professional Responsibility for lawyers, which bars the issuing of public opinions that tend to influence public opinion. "She's not a lawyer. She has the right to exercise freedom of the press, freedom of expression," said Marquez. He likewise said that it is important to note that "Justice Carpio has already inhibited." – VVP, GMANews.TV