ICC rejects Duterte bid for expert verification of evidence

MANILA, Philippines — The International Criminal Court (ICC) has rejected former President Rodrigo Duterte’s request to require expert verification of open-source and user-generated evidence in his crimes against humanity case, saying the additional requirement could unnecessarily delay the start of his trial.

ICC Trial Chamber III, in a seven-page decision dated September 28, denied the defense’s request to amend the court’s E-Court Protocol to include an “expert verification field” for evidence listings.

The request was filed last month by Duterte’s defense team, led by British lawyer Peter Haynes, amid concerns over the volume and quality of evidence disclosed by the prosecution.

The proposed amendment would have required another layer of authentication for evidence obtained from open sources or generated by users.

“Given the large volume of evidence that has been made available by the Prosecution in the present case, as well as the breadth of open-source and user-generated evidence, such obligation, if implemented, may in the event be unnecessary and could well have the effect of causing a needless delay to the start of the trial,” the chamber said.

The chamber noted that it had already issued multiple orders during the third status conference to address concerns over the volume of evidence.

Instead, the ICC granted the prosecution’s request to amend the E-Court Protocol by adding a URL metadata field for open-source evidence.

The field will allow the parties to identify the URL associated with the evidence at the time it was captured.

The proposal was agreed upon by the prosecution, defense and common legal representatives of the victims.

“Under these circumstances, the chamber is satisfied that it is appropriate to grant the request and decides to amend the E-Court Protocol as requested,” the chamber said.

The ICC Registry, the court’s administrative arm, was ordered to implement the changes by October 2, less than two months before Duterte’s trial is scheduled to begin.

Duterte’s defense team has separately asked the ICC to cap the prosecution’s evidence at 10,000 items, saying the case record has grown to 62,130 from an initial 5,275. The defense said the disclosure includes more than 320,000 pages of documents and over 1,000 audio-visual materials.

Duterte’s lawyers have described the prosecution’s evidence disclosure as being in a “terrible mess.”

The prosecution has disputed the characterization, saying the defense’s claims were not entirely accurate and were “really exaggerated, in [his] view.”

Duterte faces crimes against humanity charges over alleged killings during his time as Davao City mayor and president of the Philippines.

The 81-year-old former president appeared before the ICC in person for the first time on September 16 during the third status conference, when the chamber also heard arguments concerning his health and ability to stand trial.

Philippine authorities arrested Duterte in Pasay City on March 11, 2025, before turning him over to the ICC. He was flown to The Hague, Netherlands, where he remains in ICC custody.

Trial Chamber III later ruled that Duterte should remain detained, citing the likelihood that he could abscond or obstruct or endanger the investigation or court proceedings.

His trial is scheduled to begin on Nov. 30, 2026.

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