Group 1: Criminal Case Live

Judge: Nhiel Anthony Serentas

Clerk of Court/Narrator: Christopher Hapay
Prosecutor: Jayben Janice Aton
Defense Attorney: Carlo Go
Expert Witness: Beatrice Lim

Narrator: Good Morning Atty and Classmates. Today, Group 1 will showcase to you our Live
Mock Trial for a Criminal Case on Frustrated Homicide. Sit back and Enjoy!

COC: Good Morning! Before we start, we need to go over some administrative items for today’s
virtual session.
1. Exhibits will be referred to and not shown via screen sharing. All witness and
counsels need to have complete copies of these exhibits. This will also apply to
witness statements so that the cross-examining attorney seeking to impeach on the
basis of inconsistency may simply assume the witness and the attorney who
conducted the direct examination has the statement readily available.
2. All witnesses are deemed to be sworn in.
3. Only activate your video and audio when you are participating in the round.
4. In the event of technical difficulties, any pause in the round will be announced by
the presiding judge and timekeepers are to stop the clock.

The Virtual Trial is now in session, the Honorable Nhiel Anthony Serentas presiding.

Judge: My name is Judge Nhiel Anthony Serentas and I will be the presiding judge for this
session. I want to remind everyone that you must follow the rules and observe proper
courtroom decorum and security. Let us hope no technical difficulties will occur but we need to
be prepared for it.
Anyway, for today, members of the prosecution, your duty today will be to determine
whether the defendant is guilty or not guilty based only on the facts and evidences provided in
this case. The prosecution must prove that a crime was committed and that the defendant is
the person who committed the crime. Mr. Clerk of Court, what is today’s case?

COC: Your Honor, today’s case is Criminal Case No. 27654, People of the Philippines versus
Maria Mendoza.

Judge: Is the prosecution ready?

Prosecution: Yes, Your Honor.

Judge: Is the defense ready?

Defense: Yes, Your Honor.

Judge: Okay, we will now hear the opening statement from the prosecution. Prosecutor Janice
Aton, please state your case.

Prosecutor: Thank you, Your Honor! Ladies and Gentlemen, my name is Atty. Janice Aton, I am
representing on behalf of the State. As you have already heard, the defendant has been
charged with the crime of frustrated murder. On November 17, 2020, at about 6pm, Ms. Anna
Torres (the victim), together with her fiancé Tim Eduardo had a party celebration at their
penthouse apartment for their engagement. During the said party, Ms. Torres lost her
consciousness and was immediately taken to the hospital. The findings of the doctor said that
Ms. Torres had ingested a cyanide contained substance, some kind of poison. According to the
statement of Ms. Torres, she ingested the cocktail drink that was given to her by Ms. Maria
Mendoza during that party which was said to have contained the poisonous substance. And
while the defense will try to convince you that the defendant did not know about the poison
that was contained in the beverage, the State will provide convincing arguments that she not
only knew the poisonous substance but it was also given to Ms. Torres intentionally with strong
motive to kill her. That is everything, your Honor, Thank You.

Judge: Defense Attorney, would you wish to state your case.

Defense Lawyer: Your Honor, I am Atty. Carlo Go. Let me start with a very simple statement,
under the law, my client is presumed innocent until proven otherwise. My client has no
knowledge regarding the beverage that contained the poisonous substance. We will show later
on with our evidence that Ms. Torres was attempting to commit suicide since she has been
suffering from depression that she has had for the past 2 years and she really is having a
difficult time fighting over it. With this, my client, Maria Mendoza is very much innocent. As the
State Attorney mentioned, please keep in mind that the burden of proof falls on the State. If at
the end of the trial you have any reasonable doubt in the State’s case, then you should find my
client is not guilty. Thank you, Your Honor.

Narrator: We have presented the case of the prosecution and the defense; what we will be
highlighting in the next act is Examination of Witnesses. For purposes of today’s presentation,
we will be showing you the Expert Witness’ Direct Examination, Cross Examination and
Redirect Examination.

Narrator: Direct Examination of Dr. Beatrice Lim by Prosecutor Janice Aton.

Prosecutor: I am calling on Dr. Beatrice Lim.

COC: Do you swear to tell the truth, all the truth and nothing but the truth in this case?

Expert Witness: Yes.

Judge: Please state your name and other personal circumstances.

Expert Witness: Dr. Beatrice Lim, 38 years old, emergency physician and resident doctor of
Chong Hua Hospital, Fuente, Cebu City.

Judge: Your witness.

Prosecutor: This witness, Your Honor, Dr. Beatrice Lim, will testify on the findings of the medico
– legal report prepared by her to prove the following: (i) that the effective cause of the
complainant’s condition is chemical poisoning; (ii) that the dose taken by the complainant is
necessarily fatal; and (iii) that the possible source of the cyanide poison is the cocktail drink
prepared by the accused. May we proceed, Your Honor?

Judge: Proceed.

Q: You declared that you are a Doctor of medicine, Dr. Lim, where did you finish your medical
degree?
A: University of Sto. Tomas, Espana, Manila.

Q: When did you graduate?

A: 2007

Q: Are you a licensed physician?

A: Yes

Q: When did you pass the doctor’s board examination?

A: 2008

Q: Where are you presently connected?

A: I am presently connected with Chong Hua Hospital, Fuente, Cebu City

Q: Since when have you been employed in that hospital?

A: I have been employed there since 2010.

Q: What is your present designation?

A: I am currently and Emergency Physician in the said institution.

Q: Since you became a licensed physician, have you attended seminars and undertaken training
in connection with the practice of medicine? When and Where?
A: Yes, I have attended several training and seminars on emergency medicine both held here
and abroad. In fact, I have been invited as a guest speaker to give special lectures on modern
medical toxicology and the medico-legal aspect of poisoning. To name a few, I attended the
International Medical Conferences held last 2017 in Switzerland; it was called Poisoning and
Drug Overdose by Dr. Barry Rumack and Dr. Allan Hall who are both internationally recognized
experts in internal medicine. I was able to join another one in December 2019, just before the
Covid pandemic in Massachusetts, USA on Medicine: Practicing According to the Evidence.
Q: Have you testified as a Medical Expert in cases before courts of justice?
A: Yes, mostly on medico legal cases.

Q: How many medico legal cases so far have you testified? And what kind of medico legal cases
have you testified?
A: For the last 5 years, I would say around two hundred (200) cases. Mostly homicide and
murder cases involving food and chemical poisoning, medical malpractice cases and industrial
and vehicular accidents.

Q: Do you recall having attended on one Anna Torres at the Chong Hua Hospital?
A: Yes.

Q: Do you recall when was that doctor and about what time?
A: It was about 6:30 in the evening of November 17. 2020.

Q: Do you recall how many days was she confined in the hospital?
A: She was confined for one week.

Q: Why was she confined that long?

A: We made sure that the neurologic and cardiovascular status has normalized and acidosis and
other metabolic abnormalities have resolved before we discharge her.

Q: Wile in the hospital, did you continue attending to her?

A: Yes.

Q: After her discharge, did you require her to still see you for further medications?
A: Yes.

Q: Why?
A: I advised the patient to have a follow up check 7 to 10 days after the discharge to re-evaluate
and monitor for onset of delayed neurologic manifestations.

Q: Did the patient see you for a follow up check, doctor?

A: Yes.

Q: Did you find any neurologic complications during that follow up check?
A: None.

Q: So Doctor, we are assured that the patient, complainant herein, is in a healthy state of mind?
A: Yes.

Q: Attached to the record of the case is a medico legal issued by one Dr. Beatrice Lim, is this the
one you are referring to? (Exhibit D)
A: Yes.
Prosecutor: For the record. The witness has identified the document previously marked as
Exhibit D as the Medico Legal Report issued by Dr. Beatrice Lim.

Q: There is a signature above the typewritten name Dr. Beatrice Lim, do you know whose
signature is this doctor?
A: It is my signature.

Prosecutor: I respectfully request, Your Honor, that the signature appearing in Exhibit D be
marked as Exhibit D-1.

Judge: mark it.

Q: Doctor, can you please read in particular the summary note of the medical legal report?
A: The patient came in the emergency room stretcher-borne, unconscious and in respiratory
distress. Her vital signs then were : Blood Pressure 80/50, Cardiac rate of 50 beats per minute,
respiratory Rate of 12 cycles per minute and temperature of 37.8 degree Celsius. Patient’s skin
was flushed.

Q: Could you please explain this finding in a simpler term for an ordinary person to understand?
A: The patient was clearly in a n unstable condition, or in a very critical condition, warranting an
immediate medical intervention, constant monitoring for any sig of deterioration and further
evaluation.

Q: Do you know what could have caused this kind of condition?

A: My diagnosis at that time was there was chemical poisoning.

Q: Why was the condition of Anna Torres attributable to poisoning rather than to disease or
some natural cause? Were tests conducted confirming the existence of poisoning?
A: We did Toxin screening with the patient’s blood. It revealed the presence of trace amounts
of cyanide in the blood, and since cyanide is not normally found in our blood; and considering
its chemical nature, it is really poisonous.

Q: So you are saying that the actual or effective cause of the condition of the patient is…
A: Chemical poison, which is harmful to the body or deadly to human.

Q: Did the symptoms which appeared resemble the typical symptoms of poisoning by the
alleged poison?
A: yes, the symptoms of cyanide poisoning are headache, nausea, vomiting, generalized body
weakness, loss of consciousness, flushed skin, and unstable vital signs – all of which were
present in this case.

Q: Doctor, what could be a possible source of cyanide in this case?

A: Based on the history given to me by the informant when the patient was brought to the ER,
possible sources of cyanide could be any of the food or beverage the patient had ingested on
the night of the incident.

Q: History? What do you mean by that doctor?

A: We fill out a form called History and Physical Examination. Contained on the form are the
general data, reason for the consult or chief complaint, the history of present illness and the
past medical history. Relevant here is the History of Present Illness. This refers to the events
and activities of the patient that transpired prior to the consultation, from the onset of
symptoms to the time of consultation.
Q: Now, you mentioned about an informant of the patient in this case, doctor? Was it Ms.
Mendoza?

Defense Lawyer: Objection Your Honor, the question is leading!

Judge: Sustained.

Q: Who was the informant of the patient in this case?

A: It was Miss Maria Mendoza.

Q: Would you please tell the Court what it was exactly that Ms. Mendoza told you?
A: The informant told me that there was a party or some sort of gathering or celebration during
that night, and that the food intake of the patient was all fresh green salad, green tea and some
soda drinks.

Q: Now, my question to you – is it possible Doctor that grape fruit juice in a cocktail can be a
source of cyanide poison?

Defense Lawyer: Objection, Your Honor, the question is leading!

Judge: Sustained.

A: Actually, during the confinement of the patient in the hospital for one week, the patient
mentioned to me that she drank a cocktail with some grape fruit juice. It is possible that the
grape fruit juice could be the source of cyanide considering that she ingested the same 3 hours
before the onset of symptoms.

Q: What is the minimum lethal dose of cyanide?

A: Fatal dose is the smallest dose known to cause death; not the smallest amount which will
certainly cause death. Several scientific studies have shown that the toxic threshold dose is 50
to 100 mg of cyanide in the human body.

Q: In your opinion, was the dose taken by the victim necessarily fatal?
A: An analysis of the patient’s blood would tell us the amount or level of cyanide in the blood.
The patient’s blood was found to have 1.5 mg/dL cyanide content. Based from this definitive
finding, I can extrapolate that the amount ingested by the patient is lethal and fatal.

Q: Is that all, Doctor?

A: As previously stated, the symptoms of the patient would eventually lead to cardio –
pulmonary arrest (death). If no prompt intervention was done, the patient could have died.

Q: What are you trying to tell us Doctor?

A: The severity of the symptoms may serve as an indication of how lethal the dose of cyanide is.
Or that the effect of poisons in the body is usually proportional to the dose taken. The bigger
the dose, the more severe the symptoms will be.

Q: Doctor, do you have any other field of expertise?

A: Yes, I am also an expert chemist and toxicologist. I specialize in Forensic Medicine and
Toxicology specifically, Poisoning and Drug Overdose.

Prosecutor: I have shared with you a document, previously marked as Exhibit E. This is the
Toxicology Report from the NBI on the results of their chemical analysis of the sample taken
from the grape fruit juice and of the sample taken from the rodenticide or rat killer, Rat-A-Rest,
found in the penthouse apartment of the complainant and accused.

Q: As an expert, can you please interpret to us the findings in the report?

A: The report reveals that the sample taken from the grape fruit juice used in the cocktail drink
has been contaminated with rodenticide. It also shows that rodenticide has 50% cyanide
concentration. It also illustrated that the grape fruit juice is thus contaminated with cyanide.

Q: Doctor, have you formed an opinion?

A: It seems that the rodenticide has been intentionally mixed into the grape fruit juice used for
the cocktail drink.

Prosecutor: No more questions, Your Honor.

Judge: Cross?

Defense Lawyer: Yes, Your Honor.

Narrator: At this point, we will show you what transpires when the other party Cross
Examines.

Q: Doctor, you have testified that you also specialize in Toxicology particularly, Poisoning and
Drug Overdose, hence, you are an expert in that field, am I right?
A: Yes.
Q: Doctor, when does ingestion of the cyanide poison case the onset of symptoms of cyanide
poisoning?
A: Patients who ingest potentially fatal amounts may not develop life threatening
symptomatology for up to 1 to 2 hours following exposure.

Q: Symptoms such as?

A: In patients who do not experience sudden collapse, the initial signs and symptoms can
resemble those of anxiety or hyperventilation syndrome. Early signs include headache. Late
signs of poisoning are nausea, vomiting, loss of consciousness, and a variety of cardiac effects.

Q: The patient-complainant also testified that she drank two glasses of the alleged source of the
poison – the grape fruit juice cocktail – at around 2:45 in the afternoon and the onset of the
symptoms of cyanide poisoning was about 6pm. This, 3 hours had lapsed from the ingestion of
the alleged source – the grape fruit juice, before the symptoms developed, am I right?
A: Yes.

Q: But you also said that symptoms of cyanide poisoning are expected to develop 1 to 2 hours
following the ingestion?
A: Yes.

Q: If that is the case, don’t you think that there is an inconsistency of the duration of ingestion
and onset of symptoms between the patient’s actual case and the established scientific findings
of cyanide poisoning? With this, does this not mean that the condition of the patient cannot be
attributed to cyanide poisoning but to some other cause?
A: Yes. That is possible.

Q: Are you sure, doctor?

A: I can say that it is possible that the patient’s condition was not due to cyanide poisoning.

Q: Doctor, about the source of the poison, you only said possible sources, right?
A: Yes.

Q: By possible, you mean… ?

A: Probable or potential source of the poison, Sir.

Q: That the grape fruit juice is just one possible cause of the cyanide poison?
A: Yes.

Q: And that there are other possible sources of the cyanide as well?
A: yes.

Q: So, is it safe to conclude, Doctor, that the cyanide poison may have come from another
source considering that for that day, the patient’s food intake comprised of different food and
beverages?
A: Yes, that is possible.

Q: Are you aware of the history of said patient, that she had at one time in the past, attempted
to end her life due to depression?
A: Yes.

Q: That she has history of one previous suicidal attempt one year from the date of the incident?
A: Yes.

Q: In your opinion, is said fact relevant to the determination of the cause of the symptoms?
A: Yes. History of any previous suicidal attempts, history of the patient’s mental condition and
history of business, marital, and social failures are taken into consideration in cases of
poisoning.

Q: Is it safe to conclude then that it is possible that the poisoning is attributable to suicide?
A: Yes Sir.

Defense Lawyer: No further questions, Your Honor.

Judge: Re-direct?

Prosecutor: Yes, Your Honor.

Narrator: At this point, the Prosecution wishes to conduct Re-direct examination to our
Expert Witness, let us watch and see!

Q: Doctor, is it possible that the onset of symptoms for cyanide poisoning varies for each
person? Is it possible that said symptoms may appear beyond the normal 1 – 2 hour duration?
A: Yes, that is possible.

Q: Will you explain to us how that is possible?

A: Some persons possess different levels of sensitivity to certain substance. The body may
acquire tolerance to some substances. Another would be: the body has a natural defense
against cyanide exposure in the form of an endogenous enzyme, namely, rhodanese. This
enzyme catalyzes cyanide complexing with sulfur, forming the mush less toxic ion thiocyanate.
The availability of sulfur constitutes the rate limiting factor in natural cyanide detoxification. In
the absence of exogenous source of sulfur, rhodanese activity is too slow to prevent serious
toxicity or death.

Q: Could you explain to the court what do you mean by that Doctor?
A: Even though the normal duration is 1 to 2 hours, there are some cases in which the signs and
symptoms of cyanide poisoning in a patient may be delayed and appear beyond the normal
duration. In the case of the patient, Ms. Torres, there was a one hour delay of appearance of
symptoms because as confirmed in her lab tests, her body produces abnormal amount of sulfur
and as I’ve mentioned earlier, when there is more sulfur in the body, the cyanide detoxification
in the body is hastened, thus, the serious toxic effects of cyanide will be diminished. Lastly, the
food intake of the patient may possibly contribute to such effect.

Prosecutor: Thank you. No further questions, Your Honor.

Judge: Re-cross?

Defense Lawyer: No re-cross, Your Honor.

Judge: Ms. Witness, you may turn off your camera.

Narrator: If there any more witnesses to present from either party then they are each called
to the witness stand for the examination.

Thank you for paying attention to our live mock trial session! We hope you have learned
something from our Group and that you enjoyed our presentation!