Michael Ray Aquino acts as his own lawyer in habeas corpus appeal

CHICAGO, Illinois – It seems that former police officer Michael Ray Aquino can wear any hat as he pleases. From a police officer in the Philippines, Aquino became a nurse in the United States (US), and now he is acting as his own lawyer as he appeals the denial of his writ of habeas corpus. According to the Lectric Law library, inmates seek their release from prison by filing a petition for a writ of habeas corpus. Aquino's illegal immigration status stood in his way of pursuing his second career as a nurse. His situation became even more complicated when he was later on charged with and convicted of spying. In the Philippines, Aquino was a former intelligence officer in the police force. He was Deputy Directory of the Intelligence Group, and later senior superintendent of the now defunct Presidential Anti-Organized Crime Task Force (PAOCTF). In 2001, he and Cesar Mancao were charged for the double murders of Bubby Dacer, a public relations consultant whose clients included former President Joseph Estrada, and Dacer's driver, Emmanuel Corbito. However, at that time, Aquino left the Philippines and moved to New York. In March 2005, the former police officer was arrested for overstaying his visa. A probe conducted by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) on Aquino's affairs reportedly showed evidence of Aquino committing espionage against the United States government. Later, in a plea bargain agreement, Aquino pleaded guilty to illegal possession of classified documents. He faced a jail sentence of between 70 and 87 months, aside from a $250,000 fine. On July 17, 2007, he was sentenced to six years and four months in prison. Denial of writ of habeas corpus Recently, apparently frustrated with the way his lawyer in the spying case and later his extradition case handled his cases, Aquino informed the court that he will be acting as his own lawyer in his appeal for the denial of his habeas corpus. In some states, lawyers appointed by the court to represent an indigent criminal defendant can only be allowed to appear in state courts but does not include a federal appeal court. GMANews.TV, in an email, sought Aquino's lawyer, Mark Berman, for comment on why Aquino dispensed with his service. Berman, however, did not reply to the email. In December last year, Aquino filed a 54-page appellant brief before the United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Aquino, signing as “pro se" (his own lawyer), told the court that the “clear pattern of fabrication of evidence by the Philippine prosecution — from the submission of bones found to be “animal skull," to the suppression of DNA evidence, to the preparation of the Cezar Mancao’s affidavit by the prosecutor" — are enough reasons that his “extradition request be refused for lack of probable cause." Aquino argued, “without a victim, there is no death. In the absence of death, there is no crime of murder. Without a crime, there can be no basis for a finding of probable cause." Aquino noted that the “few bones" of what remains of Dacer and Corbito were used as evidence of the Philippine Department of Justice (DOJ) after their bodies were incinerated “for only two hours with stray pieces of wood and rubber tires." He said the evidence belies “the assertion that the incineration reduced two human bodies to a few pieces of bone fragments." Citing the book, “Beyond the Body Farm" written by Dr. William Bass, a professor emeritus of the University of Tennessee, Aquino said, “True, by subjecting corpses to temperatures of 1600 to 1800 degrees Fahrenheit (871 to 982 degrees Centigrades), cremation furnaces do destroy all the organic (carbon-containing) chemicals in the body, including DNA; however, when the gas is turned off, the furnace is cooled, and the door is opened, what remains is a recognizable human skeleton." Dr. Raquel Fortun wrote a letter to the NBI Director to attest that the “remains (fragments and other charred bones) (that) were recovered by the NBI team on April 7, 2001 (more than four months after Dacer and Corbito were strangled and burned)." She made a report, “declaring that the bones were those of Dacer and Corbito." The report added, “the bone fragments tested negative for human DNA .. and the bone appeared to be animal skull." However, Aquino was asking the DOJ why it excluded DNA evidence when it filed information on the case. He said while the NBI requested DNA evidence on April 9, 2001, the DOJ recommended the filing of information on May 11, 2001 before the DNA results were reported on May 22, 2001. Aquino said, “Even without the DNA evidence, the lack of physical evidence obliterates probable cause." He cited the case of Diosdado Jose Allado and Robert L. Mendoza v. Hon. Roberto C. Diokno (May 5, 1994), where the Philippine Supreme Court observed that “A human body cannot be pulverized into ashes by simply burning it with the use of gasoline and rubber tires in an open field." Aquino added that the same court “found that absence of skeletal remains obliterated probable cause." Aquino can elevate his habeas corpus appeal before the United States Supreme Court if the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit denies his appeal. – VVP, GMANews.TV