House prosecution, VP defense submit pre-trial briefs to Senate

Both the House prosecution panel and Vice President Sara Duterte’s legal team have submitted their respective pre-trial briefs on Monday, June 15, ahead of the scheduled pre-trial conference on June 18.

The House prosecution panel’s brief lays out its list of evidence, witnesses, and proposed stipulations with the defense team before the Senate impeachment court. Lead prosecutor Batangas Rep. Gerville Luistro earlier said the panel is presenting more than 30 witnesses in its submission.

Luistro also noted that the inclusion of additional witnesses is intended to comply with procedural rules, which bar witnesses and exhibits not included in the pre-trial brief from being presented during the trial.

On the defense side, Vice President Duterte’s legal team confirmed that they submitted their pre-trial brief at 5:50 p.m., but declined to discuss its contents.

“We will refrain from discussing the substance of the filing at this time, out of respect for the ongoing proceedings and in accordance with Rule XVIII of the Senate Rules on Impeachment,” said lawyer Michael Poa.

But according to Poa, the document contains the names of several witnesses the defense plans to present before the impeachment court, along with other matters relevant to the proceedings.

The impeachment case stems from Articles of Impeachment approved by the House, which accuse Duterte of culpable violation of the Constitution, graft and corruption, betrayal of public trust, bribery, and other high crimes.

The Senate impeachment court has set to open the trial on July 6.

Senate Secretary Renato “Rey” Bantug said the pre-trial stage involves the proposed stipulation of facts that both parties are willing to admit, as well as the simplification of issues and marking of evidence. He added that this is where the parties formalize stipulations, if any, and identify issues that the court can resolve in a simplified manner.

House Secretary-General Cheloy Garafil said the prosecution panel submitted 29 copies of its pre-trial brief, more than enough for all senator-judges. She also confirmed the filing of the formal entry of appearance of the prosecution’s lawyers.