The Philippines deports US marine pardoned after killing transgender woman

Joseph Scott Pemberton was halfway through his maximum prison term for the 2014 murder of Jennifer Laude when Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte unexpectedly ordered his release, in a move condemned by the victim's family.

Joseph Scott Pemberton is escorted to the airport before boarding a US military plane in Manila on 13 September. Source: AAP

A US marine convicted of killing a transgender woman in the Philippines was deported on Sunday after being pardoned by President Rodrigo Duterte.

Lance Corporal Joseph Scott Pemberton was halfway through his maximum 10-year prison term for the 2014 murder when Mr Duterte last week unexpectedly ordered his release, drawing condemnation from rights groups.

Escorted by US military personnel, the 25-year-old boarded a US military plane at Manila airport, the Philippine Bureau of Immigration said.

"Pemberton wishes to express his deepest gratitude to President Duterte for granting him an absolute pardon. He is extremely grateful for this act of compassion," his lawyer Rowena Flores said in a statement.

Ms Flores said Pemberton extends his "sincere sympathy for the pain he caused" to the family of his victim Jennifer Laude, the first formal apology from the marine.

"He wishes he had the words to express the depth of his sorrow and regret," she added.

Pemberton met Ms Laude in October 2014 in a bar in the northwestern city of Olongapo after a joint US-Philippine military exercise.

During the trial, a lower court heard that Pemberton and Ms Laude agreed to have sex but the drunken marine turned violent when he discovered Ms Laude still had male genitals.

People protest the release of Joseph Scott Pemberton during a rally in Quezon city on 11 September. Source: AAP

The lawyer for Ms Laude's family condemned the pardon, which has renewed anti-American sentiment in the former US colony.

"May he find peace of mind. (I'm) hoping he has learned from all these the value of life and dignity regardless of gender and nationality," lawyer Virginia Suarez told AFP.

She previously described the pardon as an injustice to Ms Laude, her family and the Filipino people.

"This is a travesty of Philippine sovereignty and democracy," Ms Suarez said in a statement last week. 

As part of his deportation to the United States, Pemberton is now banned from entering the Philippines for being a "risk to public safety", the immigration bureau added.