US Marine Found Guilty of Killing Transgender Filipino

A Philippine court on Tuesday convicted a U.S. Marine of killing a Filipino last year after he discovered she was a transgender woman in a hotel in the Philippines while he was on a break after participating in joint military exercises in the country.

Lance Cpl. Joseph Scott Pemberton was convicted of homicide by first strangling Jennifer Laude and then dunking her head into a toilet bowl in the hotel they had checked into after meeting in a disco bar in Olongapo city, northwest of Manila. He was sentenced to 6-12 years in jail, with time already spent in detention credited, said court clerk Gerry Gruspe.

Rage?

Probably. Perhaps even homicidal rage. I'm a sinner.

However ... regardless of this prostitute's disgusting, despicable, and detestable conduct he simply did not present an immediate threat of death or grave bodily harm. His behavior certainly provides an emotional explanation for the violence directed against him, but did not excuse or justify the use of lethal force.

As armed citizens, we do well to thoroughly understand the conditions under which lethal force is justified.

Mrs. D,

I don’t recall ever disagreeing with you before, and I certainly understand you have the moral high ground here.

My issue is with the argument is that, because he was involved in immoral behavior the deceit is somehow excused.

I can’t buy the “he deserved it” argument, or that he is somehow deprived of the rage anybody would experience in the situation.

this makes the Philippines more likely to let the US defend their sea lanes from Chinese aggression.

Gays are more integrated into society here in the Philippines, and our ladies of the evening are considered hard working girls trying to support their families, not evil women.

This transvestite was well liked and supported his family, so the public took the side of the prostitute.

the Marine got mad, but he didn’t have to kill him. I suspect he was so drunk he didn’t notice she was a he, and then went amok.

I understand what you're saying, G Larry.

Here's where we disagree. I don't think a tranny prostitute in a disco bar is practicing deceit. I mean, what do the customers want from a prostitute: an authentic and deeply intimate relationship with a woman? Or a brief and flashy piece of work?

What do you expect to find in a Filipino disco bar? "A woman of integrity" --- complete in every detail of body, mind and soul? Or a whore who will go with your fantasies and do what you want?

Prostitution is, precisely, an artifice-job, a fantasy-job, cunning for cunning, a shoddy mime for shoddy money.

Is the Lance Corporal just dumb? Good Lord, when did the Kinks come out with "Lola" ("She walked like a woman and talked like a man/ Oh my Lola la-la-la-la Lola la-la-la-la Lola") --- was it 1970? Somebody's shocked? Shocked? No. It's flesh and flash. And a flashy piece of work is just what the sexy Lola can deliver.

You don't go to a prostitute for a personal relationship. You go for a sexual service. No, the tranny was not deceitful. The Lance Corporal was naive.

Furthermore, even if I were to stipulate the point arguendo and say it WAS deceit, the Lance Corporal was entitled to shame and indignation and maybe even rage --- but he was not entitled to homicide.

I am sorry for the Filipino man, somebody's brother, somebody's son. Now he's dead.

I feel maybe a tad less sorry for the fine young man who brutally killed him and is still alive, but he's going to have a few years in the slammer to work out in his own mind just why and how he came to be so schtupped.

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