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Trial of Imelda Marcos

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United States v. Marcos
CourtUnited States District Court for the Southern District of New York
Full case name United States of America v. Imelda Romuáldez Marcos
DecidedJuly 2, 1990
VerdictAcquitted on all charges
DefendantImelda Romuáldez Marcos
Court membership
Judge sittingJohn F. Keenan

United States v. Marcos (officially the United States of America v. Imelda Romuáldez Marcos) was a 1990 federal trial involving the former First Lady of the Philippines, Imelda Marcos, who was indicted on charges of fraud, racketeering, conspiracy, and obstruction of justice.[1]

On July 2, 1990, the jury acquitted her on all charges,[1] after a three-month trial and five days of jury deliberations.[2] Marcos was notably represented by Gerry Spence.

The trial of Imelda Marcos is considered one of the trials of the century of the 20th century.[3][4][5]

Background

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Imelda Marcos was First Lady of the Philippines from 1965 to 1986, and in that time, wielded significant power as the wife of Ferdinand Marcos, who served as the tenth President of the Philippines from 1965 to 1986.[6]

Tobacco heiress Doris Duke posted Marcos's bail of $5 million.[7][8] Marcos faced up to 50 years in prison and fines up to $1 million if convicted of all charges.[9]

The United States and Philippine governments worked closely to prosecute the case.[2]

Trial

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95 witnesses were brought forth by prosecution against Marcos, while Gerry Spence brought forth none in defense of Marcos, instead potraying her as a victim who did not know of her husband's crimes.[10]

She was acquitted on all charges after five days of jury deliberations.[10]

References

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  1. ^ a b Wolff, Craig (1990-07-03). "The Marcos Verdict; Marcos Is Cleared of All Charges In Racketeering and Fraud Case". The New York Times. Retrieved 2024-10-05.
  2. ^ a b Rempel, William C. (1990-07-03). "Imelda Marcos Found Not Guilty: Philippines: The former first lady's late husband was the culpable party, some jurors feel. Khashoggi is also cleared". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 2024-10-05.
  3. ^ The United States District Court for the Southern District of New York: A Retrospective (1990-2000) (Report). The New York County Lawyers’ Association. December 2002. p. 11. Retrieved 7 October 2024.
  4. ^ Bareng, Eriza Ong (2018). Steeling the Butterfly: The Imperial Constructions of Imelda Marcos 1966-1990 (PDF) (PhD thesis). University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa.
  5. ^ Live Awake PH (2021-11-10), Gerry Spence, Imelda Marcos' Defense Lawyer in the Trial of the Century, retrieved 2023-11-16
  6. ^ Chaikin, David; Sharman, J. C. (2009). Corruption and Money Laundering: A Symbiotic Relationship. New York: Palgrave Macmillan US. pp. 179–182. doi:10.1057/9780230622456. ISBN 978-1-349-37827-2.
  7. ^ Reilly, William M. (1988-11-03). "Indicted former Philippine first lady Imelda Marcos was free..." UPI. Retrieved 2024-10-07.
  8. ^ Bohlen, Celestine (1988-11-03). "DORIS DUKE OFFERS MRS. MARCOS'S BAIL". The New York Times. Retrieved 2024-10-07.
  9. ^ "TESTIMONY ENDS IN FRAUD TRIAL OF IMELDA MARCOS". The Washington Post. 1990-06-19. Retrieved 2024-10-07.
  10. ^ a b Tisdall, Simon (2015-07-03). "From the archive, 3 July 1990: Tears and cheers as Imelda cleared". The Guardian.com. Retrieved 2024-10-07.