Sara Duterte Impeachment Trial: Defense Challenges Digital Evidence Authenticity

The first week of the impeachment trial of Vice President Sara Duterte wrapped up on Wednesday with the defense cross-examining a prosecution witness over the authentication of digital evidence concerning alleged grave threats made against President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. and his family. Here’s more of what happened on the third day of the impeachment trial: - Atty. Michael Poa, one of Duterte's legal counsel, said their camp's routine objection during the second day of the impeachment proceeding was not a legal tactic but merely a part of the regular court proceedings. -Lawyer Carlo Joaquin Narvasa cross-examined National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) Senior Agent John Mark Calilung, who was presented by the prosecutors as their first witness. -During the cross-examination, Narvasa scrutinized the credibility of Calilung. He also played a portion of a video of the Office of the Vice President (OVP) chief-of-staff Zuleika Lopez during an online press conference during her detention at the House of Representatives. An emotional Lopez previously expressed objection to her possible transfer to the Women's Correctional while detained at the lower chamber. -Senator Risa Hontiveros asked if Lopez's detention prompted Duterte's alleged grave threats against the President. Narvasa answered in the affirmative. -Calilung said that Duterte's statements that she had instructed someone to kill Marcos, First Lady Liza Araneta-Marcos, and former House Speaker and Leyte Representative Martin Romualdez constituted a serious threat. -The NBI agent also said that Duterte and one of her allies, identified as Princess Maui, failed to appear before the NBI to substantiate their claims of an alleged plot to kill the Vice President and her family. -This came after senator-judge Alan Peter Cayetano asked whether Princess Maui complied with the NBI's invitation to provide details about the alleged assassination plot against the Duterte family, purportedly known as "Oplan Romanov." -The House prosecution panel also said it will present Zuleika Lopez as a witness in the continuation of the impeachment trial next week. -Senator Chiz Escudero, the Senate impeachment court presiding officer, granted the House prosecution panel’s request for the issuance of a subpoena ad testificandum to Zuleika Lopez. -Several senator-judges asked clarificatory questions to Calilung regarding the authenticity of the video where the Vice President made the supposed threats. The NBI agent maintained that the video was not generated using artificial intelligence (AI). -Senator-judge Pia Cayetano withdrew her motion to strike out the remarks of counsel for prosecutor Atty. Amando Virgil Ligutan. The defense was granted the same time to give a speech at the end of the third trial day. -Lawyer Mike Vinluan made the Defense team's closing remarks. In his speech, he argued the House prosecution panel has no evidence that would prove Duterte contracted an "assassin" to kill Marcos Jr. -Poa asserted the third day of the impeachment proceedings positively, saying he is giving it a full mark as an "internal" review and that the defense team had hit its targets for the day. -A private prosecutor for the impeachment trial maintained that photocopies of documents presented as evidence before the trial court, including the Senate impeachment court, are "as good as the original" based on the amended Rules of Evidence. -The House prosecution panel is also discussing how to proceed after Escudero ruled that 16 votes are needed to convict Duterte, according to Rep. Leila de Lima. -The impeachment court presiding officer ordered the defense and the prosecution to submit a memorandum on the request for the issuance of subpoena on the tax documents of Duterte, her husband Manases Carpio, and 22 businesses. The 10-minute oral arguments on the matter are set for next Wednesday, July 15.—LDF, GMA News