[url]http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/6205324.stm[/url]
[SIZE=2][B]A US marine has been sentenced to 40 years in prison for raping a local woman in the Philippines last year.[/B] [/SIZE] [SIZE=2]The sentence was handed down to Lance Corporal Daniel Smith in a Manila courtroom for the rape of the woman in a van at a former US navy base. [/SIZE] [SIZE=2]Three other defendants, Lance Corporals Keith Silkwood and Dominic Duplantis and Staff Sergeant Chad Carpentier, were all cleared of rape. [/SIZE] [SIZE=2]The case had sparked strong protests from women's and left-wing groups. [/SIZE] [SIZE=2]About 100 protesters were outside the courthouse for the verdict. [/SIZE] [SIZE=2]They sang the nationalist song My Country and called for the end of the Visiting Forces Agreement that covers the use of overseas troops in training exercises. [/SIZE] [SIZE=2][B]Damages[/B] [/SIZE] [SIZE=2]The attack took place at the former US naval base of Subic Bay, west of Manila, in November last year. [/SIZE] [SIZE=2]Smith, 21, from St Louis, Missouri, had said the sex was consensual. [/SIZE] [SIZE=2] [IMG]http://newsimg.bbc.co.uk/media/images/42383000/jpg/_42383316_danielap.jpg[/IMG] Smith said the sex was consensual
But Judge Benjamin Pozon said the woman was so drunk she could not have consented to sex. [/SIZE]
[SIZE=2]He said the length of the sentence was aimed at "protecting women against the unbridled bestiality of persons who cannot control their libidinous proclivity". [/SIZE] [SIZE=2]Smith was also ordered to pay the defendant 100,000 pesos ($2,000) in damages. [/SIZE] [SIZE=2]The marines had been held in custody at the US embassy, after the US refused to hand them over until the end of the trial. [/SIZE] [SIZE=2]The defendants were stationed in Okinawa, Japan, but had just finished manoeuvres in the Philippines when the attack occurred. [/SIZE] [SIZE=2]The case created strong emotions in the Philippines, with protesters often appearing at the courtroom. [/SIZE] [SIZE=2]They had held placards including the phrases "Justice for Nicole," "Jail the Yankees," and "Rage Against Rape". [/SIZE] [SIZE=2]Nicole was the pseudonym given to the victim, now 23, in the case. [/SIZE]