Peter Estrada

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Charge:	Murder and Rape
Sentence:	Life Imprisonment
Years Imprisoned:	15
Year Crime:	1991
Year Convicted:	2000
Year Cleared:	2010
U.S. State or Country of Crime:	Philippines
County or Region of Crime:
City of Crime:	Parañaque City
Result:	Judicially Exonerated Released
Summary of Case:	"Hubert Webb, Antonio Lejano Jr., Michael Gatchalian, Miguel Rodriguez, Hospicio Fernandez, and Peter Estrada were six co-defendants wrongly convicted on January 4, 2000 of rape and murder in the June 30, 1991 deaths of Estrellita Vizconde, 47, and her daughters, Carmela, 19, and Jennifer, 7, in Parañaque City, Philippines. Only Carmela was raped. The six men had alibis for being elsewhere at the time of the crimes. Webb had the strongest alibi, with documentary and eyewitness alibi evidence that he was in the United States living in Anaheim Hills, California (near Los Angeles) at the time of the murders, more than 7,000 miles from Paranaque. Webb was alleged to have raped Carmela, but the others were charged with the rape as co-conspirators. Their convictions were based on the key testimony of Jessica M. Alfaro, who said she was present in the house at the time of the murders. Alfaro also provided the key testimony against police officer Gerardo Biong, who was also found guilty of being an accessory to the murders by allegedly causing the destruction of evidence at the crime scene. The six defendants convicted of murder were sentenced to life in prison and Biong was sentenced to between 11 years 4 months and 12 years in prison. The Philippines Court of Appeal affirmed the convictions, but Biong's sentence was reduced to between 6 and 12 years in prison. It was discovered post-conviction that Alfaro was an agent of the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) who merely volunteered to act out the role of an eyewitness. Based on the new evidence undermining the credibility of Alfaro's testimony, including her testimony against Biong, the seven defendants filed motions to overturn their convictions. The Philippines Supreme Court en banc acquitted all seven defendant's on December 14, 2010, on the basis that, "The prosecution failed to prove beyond reasonable doubt the guilt of the accused." The Court also insinuated that the NBI coached and manipulated Alfaro’s testimony against the seven men. The six defendants convicted of murder were released later that day after 15 years of incarceration since their jailing in 1995. The six defendants convicted of murder were jailed pre-trial for five years before their trial in 2000. Ex-police officer Biong had been released two weeks earlier, on November 29, 2010, after completing his sentence. Since all the men were acquitted on the basis of insufficient evidence, they cannot be retried because it would be double jeopardy."
Conviction Caused By:	Perjury by the prosecution's key witness that it was not disclosed to the defense was a police informant.
Innocence Proved By:	"The Philippines Supreme Court acquitted the seven defendant's on December 14, 2010, on the basis that "“The prosecution failed to prove beyond reasonable doubt the guilt of the accused." "
Defendant Aided By:
Compensation Awarded:
Was Perpetrator Identified?
Age When Imprisoned:
Age When Released:
Sex:	Male
Skin/Ethnicity:
Information Source 1:	"Antonio Lejano Vs. People of the Philippines -- People of the Philippines Vs. Hubert Jeffrey P. Webb, et al., G.R. No. 176389 -- G.R. No. 176864. December 14, 2010"
Information Location 1:	http://sc.judiciary.gov.ph/jurisprudence/2010/december2010/176389.htm
Information Source 2:	"Webb, 6 others may not be innocent, Manila Bulletin, December 15, 2010"
Information Location 2:	http://www.mb.com.ph/articles/293036/sc-webb-6-others-may-not-be-innocent
Information Source 3:	"Webb's tears of joy -- Vizconde's bitter tears, By Domini M. Torrevillas (staff), The Philippine Star, December 16, 2010"
Information Location 3:	http://www.philstar.com/Article.aspx?articleId=639674&publicationSubCategoryId=64
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Information Location 5:
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Peter Estrada

Charge:

Murder and Rape

Sentence:

Life Imprisonment

Years Imprisoned:

15

Year Crime:

1991

Year Convicted:

2000

Year Cleared:

2010

U.S. State or Country of Crime:

Philippines

County or Region of Crime:

City of Crime:

Parañaque City

Result:

Judicially Exonerated Released

Summary of Case:

Conviction Caused By:

Perjury by the prosecution's key witness that it was not disclosed to the defense was a police informant.

Innocence Proved By:

"The Philippines Supreme Court acquitted the seven defendant's on December 14, 2010, on the basis that "“The prosecution failed to prove beyond reasonable doubt the guilt of the accused." "

Defendant Aided By:

Compensation Awarded:

Was Perpetrator Identified?

Age When Imprisoned:

Age When Released:

Sex:

Male

Skin/Ethnicity:

Information Source 1:

"Antonio Lejano Vs. People of the Philippines -- People of the Philippines Vs. Hubert Jeffrey P. Webb, et al., G.R. No. 176389 -- G.R. No. 176864. December 14, 2010"

Information Location 1:

http://sc.judiciary.gov.ph/jurisprudence/2010/december2010/176389.htm

Information Source 2:

"Webb, 6 others may not be innocent, Manila Bulletin, December 15, 2010"

Information Location 2:

http://www.mb.com.ph/articles/293036/sc-webb-6-others-may-not-be-innocent

Information Source 3:

"Webb's tears of joy -- Vizconde's bitter tears, By Domini M. Torrevillas (staff), The Philippine Star, December 16, 2010"

Information Location 3:

http://www.philstar.com/Article.aspx?articleId=639674&publicationSubCategoryId=64

Information Source 4:

Information Location 4:

Information Source 5:

Information Location 5:

Book About Case:

Book Information:

Book About Case (2):

Book Information (2):

Movie About Case:

Comments About Case: