The family of a British School Manila (BSM) student who jumped to his death last year is not giving up despite the Department of Justice (DOJ) ruling that dismissed the complaint they filed against several school officials.
Joseph Noel Estrada, counsel for the mother of the late Liam Joseph Madamba, said they had filed a motion for reconsideration and would count on earlier pronouncements from Justice Secretary Vitaliano Aguirre that he would review the so-called “midnight resolutions” issued by the DOJ during the previous administration.
“On July 8, barely a week after President Duterte and Secretary Aguirre assumed office, Trixie Madamba (Liam’s mother) received a resolution dismissing the criminal complaint, finding no probable cause to indict all the respondents, mostly foreigners, for obstruction of justice. Interestingly, the DOJ resolution was dated June 16, and may be part of the so-called midnight resolutions,” Estrada said.
He was referring to the ruling approved by Prosecutor General Claro Arellano, which dismissed the complaint and likened it to “a fishing expedition” since it was filed even though the BSM officials were never subjected to any criminal investigation over the student’s suicide.
But Estrada noted that “the resolution was released without even giving the new (Justice) secretary the chance to look into the matter.”
Estrada said Trixie was surprised to learn that even after her complaint had been submitted for resolution, the investigating prosecutor still “unilaterally admitted, without her knowledge,” two BSM officials’ assertion of diplomatic immunity. He was referring to Trevor Lewis and Bill Twedell.
Trixie, who in May 2015 also got the Senate to conduct a public hearing on her case, alleged that her 18-year-old son was driven to suicide after his teacher, Natalie Mann, humiliated and threatened him with expulsion over a plagiarized essay.