Makati RTC executive Judge Sixto Marella Jr. ordered the case raffled on Monday at 1:30 p.m. to determine the judge who will now handle the case.
The Supreme Court ordered the transfer of the case of the four US Marines to Makati earlier this week after the Olongapo City Judge Renato Dilag, who was to hear the case, recused himself.
Marella will have to officially inform concerned parties of the schedule of the raffle before it is carried out.
Records of the case are contained in three volumes of documents about six inches thick.
The STAR learned that available judges will meet on Monday to determine if any of them can hear the case.
A judge may excuse himself from taking part in the raffle if he has a justifiable reason such as having relatives among lawyers of either party in the case.
The Makati RTC has 30 courts, but only 19 are eligible to take the case since the remaining 11 are either family courts, illegal drugs courts, or courts without judges.
The Department of Justice had asked that the case be transferred to a court in Manila, but the SC decided to give it to the Makati RTC, which has a lighter caseload than Manila and Quezon City.
Charged with raping the Filipina last November were S/Sgt. Chad Carpentier, Lance Corporals Keith Silkwood, Dominic Duplantis and Daniel Smith.
The four US Marines said there was no conspiracy and no rape was committed.
Silkwood and Duplantis said that prosecutors in Olongapo City erred in finding the existence of a conspiracy in the alleged commission of rape.
Smith admitted to having "consensual sex" with the victim.
The scheduled arraignment of the four US Marines before the Olongapo City RTC last March 24 was postponed after Dilag inhibited himself from hearing the case.
Dilag inhibited himself after it was revealed that his son had worked as a lawyer for a law firm handling the case of one of the Americans.
Under the Rules of Court, the venue of cases can be changed on orders of the Supreme Court based on justifiable grounds. — Michael Punongbayan