Distraught, but not losing hope. This is the mindset of Felisa Jabines on her family’s continued quest for justice.

It has been almost four months since Felisa’s daughter, Joyce, was found dead inside her room at a boarding house along M.H. del Pilar St. in the city.

She was barely clothed and bloodied with two stab wounds to the left side of her chest while her face was tightly wrapped with a face towel and tape.

Still reeling from the brutal killing of Joyce, Felisa and her family were dealt with another blow last week as the rape-slay complaint against the case’s sole identified suspect was dismissed.

The Tagbilaran City Prosecutor’s Office, in a three-page resolution, cited failure to establish probable cause due to the lack of “requirements for circumstantial evidence” as reason for the dismissal.

In an interview on DYRD Balita, however, Felisa aired her optimism saying that she, along with her husband and two children, have not lost hope in attaining justice for Joyce.

Felisa, a native of Antequera, had reached out to the town’s mayor, Jose Mario Pahang, and other officials to help them in filing a motion for reconsideration.

Last week, Felisa admitted that her family lacks financial resources to push through with legal proceedings as she appealed to the public for assistance.

Felisa said that Joyce, 25, who was a secretary at Fundline Lending Company, helped the Jabines family with their daily expenses while she was alive.

On Monday next week, Felisa will be accompanied by Pahang as she appeals to Governor Edgar Chatto for assistance.

The Jabines family is also planning to ask the National Bureau of Investigation for help in probing the violent killing of Joyce.

Meanwhile, the prosecutor’s office had also directed police officers to conduct further investigation and build an “airtight case” against the perpetrator of the crime. (Rey Tutas)