Republic of the Philippines

REGIONAL TRIAL COURT

First Judicial Region
Branch ____
Baguio City

THE PEOPLE OF THE

PHILIPPINES,
Plaintiff,
Criminal Case No. __________

- versus- For: R.A. 9262, Violation

against women AND
THEIR CHILDREN – Sec.
5 (a), (b), (e), (h), and (i)
JOHN B. HAY,
Accused.
x - - - - - - - - - - - -- - - - - - - - - -x

JUDICIAL AFFIDAVIT

I, RAMONA E. ABAT, of legal age, married, Filipino, a resident of No. 16

San Carlos Heights Subdivision, Baguio City, after having been sworn in
accordance with law, state under oath as follows:

The person examining me is Atty. Cleah Maryell D. Llamas with office

address at FELP Law Office, No. 16 Laperal Building, Session Road, Baguio
City. The examination was held at the same address on September 1, 2022.
The questions are propounded in English, a language which I know and fully
understand. I am answering the questions fully conscious that I do so under
oath and may face criminal liability for false testimony or perjury.

BACKGROUND OF THE CASE

Jacky B. Garcia is a 31-year-old female, single, currently residing at #08

Camp 7, Baguio City. She has an intimate relationship with the accused, John
Hay and they both lived together in the same house for seven (7) years. She
was allegedly physically and mentally abused by her live-in partner. On
August 12, 2022, she was rushed to Baguio General Hospital for sustaining
serious physical injury.
 OFFER OF TESTIMONY

This Judicial Affidavit of the witness RAMONA E. ABAT is being offered

as evidence for the Prosecution to prove that:

1. The witness possesses the qualifications to be an expert witness in the

field of psychiatry and forensic psychology;

2. The witness personally examined and evaluated Jacky D. Garcia, the

private offended party or complainant in this instant case;

3. The private offended party or complainant in this instant case is

suffering from psychiatric disorders classified as Post-traumatic Stress
Disorder or PTSD along with Major Depressive Disorder and Anxiety; and
4. Such above-mentioned psychological conditions are caused by the
intimate partner violence that the private offended party suffered from the
accused.

DIRECT EXAMINATION

QUALIFYING AS AN EXPERT WITNESS

Question (Q1): Please state your name and other personal circumstances.
Answer 1 (A1): I am, Dr. Ramona E. Abat, 45 years old, married, residing at
# 16 San Carlos Heights Subdivision, Baguio City

Q2: What profession are you practicing?

A2: I am practicing in Psychiatry and specializing in General and Adult
Psychiatry. My consultation lies on psychiatry and addiction medicine.

A copy of certification specialization of Dr. Ramona E. Abat is attached hereto

as Exhibit “A.”

Q3: What is your current occupation?

A3: I am currently an assistant professor at Saint Louis University - School of
Medicine, and the Department Coordinator of the Department of
Neurosciences of the same institution.

Q4: Prior to practicing your profession, what is your educational background?

A4: I attended Saint Louis University for my Degree in Medicine and
graduated from the School of Medicine of SLU in the year 2000. My
undergraduate degree is Bachelor of Science in Medical Technology, also
from SLU.

A copy of the certificate of graduation is attached herein as Exhibit “B”.

Page 2 of 16
Q5: After graduating, what professional examination, if any, were you able to
take or pass?
A5: I took my Physician Licensure Examination for the medical boards in
2001 and passed the same examination in the same year as well.

Q6: As a licensed physician, what residencies or training were you able to

accomplish?
A6: I took my post graduate training for addiction medicine at the Philippine
General Hospital – UP Manila, and took my post residency fellowship in
consultation on psychiatry also at PGH. I also took my post graduate
internship at the Armed Forces of the Philippines Medical Center – Victoriano
Luna General Hospital. My residency in training in psychiatry is from Baguio
General Hospital.

Q7: What positions related to the field of psychiatry had you been involved
in?
A7: I held the position of Assistant Chairman in the Technical Review Board
of the Baguio General Hospital Medical Center from 2015 to 2019; and I also
served as Chairman of the Department of psychiatry of the same institution
from 2017 to 2019.
I also served as a Training Officer and Chaired the Committee on
accreditation and standardization of the residency program of Philippine
Psychiatric Association.

Q8: How many years have you been practicing in the field of medicine and
psychiatry?
A8: I have been practicing psychiatry for more or less twenty (20) years now.

Q9: In your twenty years of experience, what medical or psychiatric book,

research, or article have you authored or published?
A9: I have authored and co-authored numerous articles and researches but one
research I am most proud of is the Description of Areca Nut Use in a
Cordilleran Community.

Q10: What other psychiatric-related activities have you been involved in the
past twenty years of your practice?
A10: I have conducted numerous trainings and workshops on addiction,
anxiety, depression, mental wellness, and gender sensitivity. I am currently an
active member of DOH, Women and Children Protection Unit and Psychiatric
Rehabilitation Practitioners of Philippine Psychiatric Association.

A copy of certification of membership of Dr. Ramona E. Abat is attached

hereto as Exhibit “C”, and certification for conducting training attached as
Exhibit “D”.

Q11: What do you do as a psychiatrist?

A11: I examine patients to assess their mental and physical symptoms.

Page 3 of 16
Q12: In your practice as a psychiatrist, have you encountered any patients that
are suffering or suffered violence from their partners?
A12: Yes.

Q13: How many patients suffering from violence from their partners have you
encountered up to the present?
A13: More than 100 patients.

Q14: How do you diagnose patients, particularly women, suffering from

violence from their partners?
A14: First, I will conduct an interview of the client asking her questions which
will provide me with some “identifying information”. I will also ask questions
pertaining to the symptoms, personal history, and family history of the victim.
Next, I will ask the patient their recent or past traumatic experience as well as
the marital and financial status of the patient.
The second step would be to interview a family member of the patient
,if one is available , regarding matters pertaining to the patient.
Third, I will conduct a physical examination of the patient because
sometimes psychiatric problems can be caused by physical disorders.
Fourth, I will conduct medical tests.
Fifth, after all the examinations conducted, I will now make a
psychiatric evaluation.

Q15: Is this your first time to testify as an expert witness in court regarding
cases involving violence against women?
A15: No.

Q16: To the best of your knowledge, how many times have you testified as
an expert witness?
A16: I have made 105 testimonies as an expert witness as to this date.

Q17: Having been stated these information about your years of experience as
a psychiatrist, can you say with absolute certainty that you are qualified to
testify as an expert witness to attest that suffering from psychiatric disorders
classified as Post-traumatic Stress Disorder or PTSD along with Major
Depressive Disorder and Anxiety?
A17: Yes, I am.

DIRECT EXAMINATION PROPER

Q18: Miss witness, where are you at the moment?

A18: I am at FELP Law Office in Session Road.

Page 4 of 16
Q19: Why are you here?
A19: I am here to be examined as an expert witness in a criminal case
involving Jacky Garcia.

Q20: You mentioned the name Jacky Garcia, how do you know Ms. Jacky
Garcia?
A20: She came to me for a psychiatric examination and evaluation.

Q21: When did Ms. Garcia came to you for such an evaluation?
A21: If I’m recalling it correctly, it was on the 27th of July.

Q22: What was the result of such meeting with Ms. Garcia?
A22: We agreed to schedule three (3) meetings for her evaluation.

Q23: When did those subsequent meetings transpire?

A23: The first meeting was on July 28; the second meeting took place last
August 2; and the last meeting was held on August 7.

Q24: Where did these meetings take place?

A24: They were all held in my clinic at the Baguio General Hospital.

Q25: In those meetings, what did you do?

A25 I performed psychological evaluations or what we call forensic
psychological evaluation.

Q26: You mentioned “forensic psychological evaluation”, what does that

mean?
A26: A forensic psychological evaluation is an objective evaluation of a
person’s psychological state which is primarily conducted for purposes of
offering evidence in courts. So here, the victim or the person examined is not
really a client of mine nor is she under my care or treatment. The evaluation
is objective and it involves multi-method processes and multi-hypothesis
methodology which looks into different and numerous theories of the case and
shed light to what could possibly take place or what are the things that are
going on surrounding the case.

Q27: What did your evaluation with Ms. Garcia consist of?
A27: It consisted of psychological testing, structured clinical interviews with
the client, review of documents and records relative to her case, and collateral
interviews with her mother and sister.

Q28: Can you enlighten us on what a clinical interview is?

A28: So a clinical interview is an interview that we use in the field of
psychiatry and forensic psychology which talks basically about the life of a
victim, the things that happened before, during, or after a relationship with an
accused to eventually have a wider perspective and understanding of the life
of a particular person; and to have a full sense of a person’s life and being. As

Page 5 of 16
to intimate partner violence, such clinical interviews help us in determining
the full structure of the relationship and what are the things that happened and
what are the consequences.

Q29: You also mentioned that you reviewed documents relative to this case,
what documents are those?
A29: Well, it’s a standard practice in the field of psychiatry that we look into
documents that may have a factor in our evaluation. In a case of violence
against women for example, we look into existing medical records that the
victim has or any existing psychological evaluations or psychological
treatment notes that a victim already has. For the purpose of my evaluation of
Ms. Garcia, I looked into the medical records of the victim such as records of
bruises, burns, and cuts; and I also reviewed the psychological treatment notes
of a Dr. Strange who treated the victim for several occasions. Finally, I also
looked into different photographs that Ms. Garcia presented to me as evidence
of the physical abuses and the resulting injuries she sustained from such
physical attacks so I can relate them to whatever she said to me during the
clinical interviews.

Q30: What conclusions, if any, were you able to arrive at after your
examinations and evaluations with Ms. Garcia?
A30: I concluded that the victim’s report of intimate partner violence, both as
to physical abuse and psychological abuse, and the records that I reviewed are
consistent with what is known in the field of psychiatry about intimae partner
violence characterized by physical abuse and psychological aggression.

Q31: What other conclusions did you arrive at?

Q31: I also concluded that the victim demonstrated very patent psychological
and behavioural effects suffered by the victim.

Q32: If any, what diagnostic conclusion or diagnosis did you arrive at?
A32: I diagnosed Ms. Garcia with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder along with
depression and anxiety.

Q33: You mentioned a diagnosis of “Post Traumatic Stress Disorder”, what

is the nature of such diagnosis?
A33: Post Traumatic Stress Disorder or PTSD is a psychological condition
experienced by those who have been exposed to a substantial degree of trauma
or shocking and dangerous events. The etiology or causes of PTSD varies,
however, it is very common that PTSD may develop out of an abusive
relationship especially when there is physical abuse involved.

Q34: You mentioned “etiology”, what does it mean?

A34: Etiology is a medical term that is used in medicine which refers to the
cause or reason behind a medical condition or the reason behind a medical
diagnostic conclusion.

Page 6 of 16
Q35: In your expert opinion, what is etiology of Ms. Garcia’s PTSD?
A35: The causes of Ms Garcia’s PTSD are the different episodes of physical
and psychological abuse that she suffered from Mr Hay, her partner.

Q36: As to the other diagnoses, what is or are the causes?

A36: The etiology of depression and anxiety that the victim is suffering from
are also the episodes of physical and psychological abuse that she obtained
from Mr Hay together with psychological abuses such as extreme
surveillance.

Q37: Miss witness, I am handing to you a document pre-marked as “Exhibit

J”, what document is this?
A37: This is a Psychiatric Report that I accomplished regarding my
examination and evaluation with Jacky Garcia.

Q38: In the first page of the document, under the “General Data of Client”,
what name appears as the “client”?
A38: Jacky Garcia.

Q39: In the second page of the document, under the “Diagnosis”, what is or
are stated?
A39: Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder, Major Depressive Disorder and
Anxiety

Q40: In the same page and under the “Basis for Diagnosis”, what are stated?
A40: It is stated the basis for the diagnoses are the following: the behavioural
symptoms of the victim which include alcohol abuse, sleep disorder, appetite
disturbance, fatigue, sense of self-blame and worthlessness, severe worrying,
under-eating, and repeated replays of violence especially at night; the results
of the psychological examination; and review of relative medical records.

Q41: In the same page and at the lowest portion of the document, what can
you see?
A41: My name and my signature.

Q42: This concludes our examination. Thank you Dr. Abat for your time.
A42: Thank you attorney.
--- END OF STATEMENT —

All the foregoing have been explained to me by the notary public, and I fully
understood the meaning and import of the averments above, and I attest to its
veracity.

Page 7 of 16
IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto affixed my signature this 1st day
of September, 2022 in Baguio City.

RAMONA E. ABAT
Affiant

Page 8 of 16
 ATTESTATION

I, ATTY TANYA PAKYO, of legal age, Filipino citizen and with

office address located at FLEP Law Office, #16 Laperal Building, Session
Road, Baguio City; under oath, hereby depose and state that:

1. I am the lawyer who conducted or supervised the examination of

the witness;

2. I faithfully recorded or caused to be recorded the questions I

asked and the corresponding answers that the witness gave; and,

3. I or any other person did not coach the witness regarding her
answers.

IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand this 1st day of

September 2022 in Baguio City.

Cleah Maryell Llamas

Examining Lawyer
pakyotanya@gmail.com | 0916 284 5398
Roll No. 867454; July 25, 2019
IBP No. 23455; July 30, 2019
PTR No. 643092; January 8, 2020, Baguio City
MCLE Compliance No. VII-0007861, issued April 15, 2020

SUBSCRIBED AND SWORN to before me this 2nd day of September at the

City of Baguio; affiant exhibiting to me her IBP ID NO. 12345 issued by the
Integrated Bar of The Philippines on December 1, 2020.

Page 9 of 16
Page 10 of 16
Exhibit “A”

Page 11 of 16
EXHIBIT “B”

Page 12 of 16
EXHIBIT “C”

Page 13 of 16
EXHIBIT “D”

Page 14 of 16
 “EXHIBIT E”

BAGUIO GENERAL HOSPITAL

WOMEN AND CHILDREN PROTECTION UNIT

PSYCHIATRIC REPORT

I. GENERAL DATA OF CLIENT:

NAME: JACKY GARCIA

ADDRESS: No. 16 San Carlos Heights Subdivision, Baguio City
AGE: 40
SEX: Female
STATUS: Married
Spouse (if any): John B. Hay

II. HISTORY OF PRESENT ILLNESS

Past medical records: The client has recorded medical records of bruises,
burns, cuts, broken bones on the face, and light concussions.

Symptoms observed: The client has developed several behavioural symptoms

such as alcohol abuse, sleep disorder, appetite disturbance, fatigue, sense of
self-blame and worthlessness, severe worrying, under-eating, and repeated
replays of violence especially at night.

III. Personal History

The client is a house-wife and mother to her husband named John B. Hay and
son named Jonathan B. Hay. During her younger years, she was able to obtain
a bachelor’s degree in political science and was able to attend law school for
her law degree. However, when her relationship with her then boyfriend and
now husband turned to a serious relationship, the client decided to stop her
study of law and marry John. They got married and had a son. She was not
able to continue her law studies and remained as a house-wife until today. She
was born and raised in Baguio by a loving and caring mother. Her father died
when she was 3 years old.

The client’s marital relationship with her husband was a good and peaceful
one at the start but it eventually turned sour and violent towards their 6th

Page 15 of 16
anniversary when the husband started suspecting the client of unfaithful acts
which are baseless and caused by pure delusions. She started receiving
physical attacks from her husband. Her husband also started drinking heavily
almost every night after work. The violent episodes of their relationship
continued for several years until today.

IV. SIGNIFICANT FINDINGS IN PSYCHOLOGICAL

EXAMINATION:

The client displayed numerous signs of symptoms of psychological disorder.

During clinical interviews, the client would often cry heavily and display a
sense of fear and worry especially if being asked about her husband. Her
speech dramatically changes when the conversation would shift to her
husband. She recalls episodes of violence but would not recall every detail of
some of the extreme stories. She shows a sense of self-blame as she always
blames herself for the attacks made by her husband upon her. She would
display fear whenever she is recalling violent episodes in their relationship.
She does not eat and sleep well. She has trouble getting sleep at night but
would always wake up early. She is always bothered by her own actions even
when she is alone. She would get nightmares of the same scenarios of
violence.

V. DIAGNOSIS:

POST-TRAUMATIC STRESS DISORDER;

MAJOR DEPRESSICE DISORDER; and
ANXIETY

Basis for diagnosis:

Basis for the diagnoses are the following: the behavioural symptoms of the
victim which include alcohol abuse, sleep disorder, appetite disturbance,
fatigue, sense of self-blame and worthlessness, severe worrying, under-
eating, and repeated replays of violence especially at night; the results of
the psychological examination; and review of relative medical records.

August 15, 2022.

DR. RAMONA E. ABAT

Page 16 of 16