International Criminal Court (ICC) judges have rejected the request of former president Rodrigo Duterte’s defense for an additional expert report, ruling that further medical evidence is neither necessary nor appropriate at this stage.

In a decision dated Jan. 7, Pre-Trial Chamber I denied the defense’s request for a new expert report on risks under Article 58(1)(b) of the Rome Statute, which covers the risk of flight, interference with proceedings, or commission of crimes.

The defense had sought an urgent order directing a panel of court-appointed experts to issue another report focusing on whether Duterte’s current cognitive condition would affect those risks.

The Chamber said it already has sufficient medical information on record following the submission of joint and individual reports by a panel of three independent experts appointed by the court.

Judges noted that the panel was appointed for the limited purpose of assessing Duterte’s medical condition in relation to his fitness to participate in pre-trial proceedings, a mandate they said had already been fulfilled.

Ordering an additional report, the Chamber said, would exceed the experts’ mandate and is not required for its determination of detention-related issues.

The judges also stressed that deciding whether the risks cited under Article 58(1)(b) continue to exist is a legal determination entrusted to the Chamber, not a matter requiring further expert evidence.

The Office of the Prosecutor opposed the request, arguing that no changed circumstances justified additional expert findings, while the Office of Public Counsel for the Victims also said the request lacked legal basis.

In the same decision, the Chamber said it will set the schedule for a hearing on the periodic review of Duterte’s detention in due course, making it unnecessary to rule on the defense’s related request at this time.

Duterte, arrested in March last year, is facing an ICC case over alleged crimes against humanity linked to the Philippine government’s anti-drug campaign between 2016 and 2019, proceedings that have continued despite the Philippines’ withdrawal from the ICC in 2019. His earlier requests for interim release had been denied by the Pre-Trial Chamber and upheld on appeal.

In December last year, ICC Deputy Prosecutor Mame Mandiaye Niang said the panel concluded that Duterte, while elderly and frail, remains capable of meaningfully exercising his procedural and fair trial rights.

“Upon completion of their assessments, Panel members individually reached the same overall conclusion that, while frail and elderly, Mr. Duterte nevertheless possesses the necessary capacities to meaningfully exercise his procedural and fair trial rights,” Niang said.

According to the prosecution, the experts found that Duterte can understand the charges and evidence against him, comprehend the conduct, purpose, and possible consequences of the pre-trial proceedings, and instruct his lawyers in preparing and presenting his defense.

Based on these findings, the prosecution asked the pre-trial chamber to move forward with the case, including the confirmation of charges hearing.

Duterte’s lawyer, Nicholas Kaufman, challenged the prosecution’s reading of the medical assessment, arguing that the panel’s joint report should not be treated as conclusive.

Kaufman said the experts used differing methodologies that conflicted with one another, casting doubt on the reliability of their shared conclusion.

“Such internal inconsistencies undermine the overall weight of the general joint conclusion on fitness,” he said.

The defense requested an evidentiary hearing to allow the parties to question the experts on their conclusions, reasoning, and methods before the court decides.

The ICC judges have not yet ruled on whether Duterte is fit to stand trial or on the defense's request to adjourn proceedings due to alleged cognitive decline.

The three-member medical panel was convened by the court to independently assess Duterte’s condition after the defense raised concerns about his capacity to participate in the case.