Guevarra: I am relieved to see end of Pemberton episode

Justice Secretary Menardo Guevarra on Sunday expressed relief that the case of US Marine Lance Corporal Joseph Scott Pemberton, the soldier convicted of homicide for the killing of Filipino transgender woman Jennifer Laude, has come to a close now that he has been deported.

"I am relieved to see the end of the Pemberton episode," Gueverra said in a statement after Pemberton was "successfully deported" from the Philippines.

"Though attended with intense conflict, it has provided valuable insights and lessons to ponder on regarding the future of the Visiting Forces Agreement (VFA), the administration of criminal justice, and the exercise of the President's constitutional powers," he added.

The military plane carrying Pemberton took off from the Ninoy Aquino International Airport at exactly 9:14 a.m. on Sunday.

Bureau of Immigration spokesperson Dana Sandoval said Pemberton will return to the US, but she refused to divulge the specific state due to security reasons.

Pemberton was released by virtue of the absolute pardon given to him by President Rodrigo Duterte just over five years into his service of a six-to-10-year prison sentence.

The absolute pardon extinguished Pemberton's criminal liability and rendered moot the emerging legal debate on whether he was entitled to early release for "good conduct."

Duterte said Pemberton was not duly monitored for Good Conduct Time Allowances (GCTAs). He claimed that authorities did not treat the American fairly.

Opposition lawmakers, however, opposed the granting of absolute pardon to Pemberton, saying that the President's move was nothing short of "an act of an American lackey."

They also maintained that Pemberton's release should amplify the calls to terminate the VFA, which governs the conduct of visiting US personnel holding military exercises in the Philippines. —LBG, GMA News