8epubllc of Lhe hlllpplnes

SUkLML CCUk1
Manlla
Ln 8AnC
G.k. No. L-2128 May 12, 1948
MLLLNCIC SAC and ICAUIN MCS1LkC, peLlLloners,
vs.
1nL CnILI CI CLICL and 1nL CIIICLk IN CnAkGL CI MUNICIAL IAIL, 8C1n CI CI1
CI MANILA,respondenLs.

ILkIA, !":
upon complalnL of 8ernardlno Mallnao, charglng Lhe peLlLloners wlLh havlng commlLLed
Lhe crlme of robbery, 8en[amln uumlao, a pollceman of Lhe ClLy of Manlla, arresLed Lhe
peLlLloners on Aprll 2, 1948, and presenLed a complalnL agalnsL Lhem wlLh Lhe flscal's
offlce of Manlla. unLll Aprll 7, 1948, when Lhe peLlLlon for "#$%#& '()*+&flled wlLh Lhls
CourL was heard, Lhe peLlLloners were sLlll deLalned or under arresL, and Lhe clLy flscal
had noL yeL released or flled agalnsL Lhem an lnformaLlon wlLh Lhe proper courLs [usLlce.
1hls case has noL been declded before Lhls Llme because Lhere was noL a sufflclenL
number of !usLlces Lo form a quorum ln Manlla, And lL had Lo be Lransferred Lo Lhe
Supreme CourL acLlng ln dlvlslon here ln 8agulo for dellberaLlon and declslon. We have
noL unLll now an offlclal lnformaLlon as Lo Lhe acLlon Laken by Lhe offlce of Lhe clLy flscal
on Lhe complalnL flled by Lhe uumlao agalnsL Lhe peLlLloners. 8uL whaLever nlghL have
been Lhe acLlon Laken by sald offlce, lf Lhere was any, we have Lo declde Lhls case ln
order Lo lay down a rullng on Lhe quesLlon lnvolved hereln for Lhe lnformaLlon and
guldance ln Lhe fuLure of Lhe offlcers concerned.
1he prlnclpal quesLlon Lo be deLermlned ln Lhe presenL case ln order Lo declde wheLher
or noL Lhe peLlLloners are belng lllegally resLralned of Lhelr llberLy, ls Lhe followlng: ls Lhe
clLy flscal of manlla a ,+-.'.#/ #+0"().01 wlLhln Lhe meanlng of Lhe provlslons of arLlcle
123 of Lhe 8evlsed enal Code?
ArLlcle 123 of Lhe 8evlsed enal Code provldes LhaL "Lhe penalLles provlded ln Lhe nexL
proceedlng arLlcle shall be lmposed upon Lhe publlc offlcer or employee who shall
deLaln any person for some legal ground and shall fall Lo dellver such person Lo Lhe
proper ,+-.'.#/ #+0"().0.%& wlLhln Lhe perlod of slx hours."
1aklng lnLo conslderaLlon Lhe hlsLory of Lhe provlslons of Lhe above quoLed arLlcle, Lhe
precepL of our ConsLlLuLlon guaranLeelng lndlvldual llberLy, and Lhe provlslons of 8ules
of CourL regardlng arresL and "#$%#& '()*+&, we are of Lhe oplnlon LhaL Lhe words
"[udlclal auLhorlLy", as used ln sald arLlcle, mean Lhe courLs of [usLlces or [udges of sald
courLs vesLed wlLh [udlclal power Lo order Lhe Lemporary deLenLlon or conflnemenL of a
person charged wlLh havlng commlLLed a publlc offense, LhaL ls, "Lhe Supreme CourL and
such lnferlor courLs as may be esLabllshed by law". (SecLlon 1, ArLlcle vlll of Lhe
ConsLlLuLlon.)
ArLlcle 123 of Lhe 8evlsed enal Code was subsLanLlally Laken from arLlcle 202 of Lhe old
enal Code formerly ln force of Lhese lslands, whlch penallzed a publlc offlcer oLher Lhan
a [udlclal offlcer who, wlLhouL warranL, "shall arresL a person upon a charge of crlme
and shall fall Lo dellver such person Lo Lhe [udlclal auLhorlLy wlLhln LwenLy four hours
afLer hls arresL." 1here was no doubL LhaL a [udlclal auLhorlLy Lhereln referred Lo was Lhe
[udge of a courL of [usLlce empowered by law, afLer a proper lnvesLlgaLlon, Lo order Lhe
Lemporary commlLmenL or deLenLlon of Lhe person arresLed, and noL Lhe clLy flscals or
any oLher offlcers, who are noL auLhorlzed by law Lo do so. 8ecause arLlcle 204, whlch
complemenLs sald secLlon 202, of Lhe same Code provlded LhaL "Lhe penalLy of
suspenslon ln lLs mlnlmum and medlum degrees shall be lmposed upon Lhe followlng
persons: 1. Any [udlclal offlcer who, wlLhln Lhe perlod prescrlbed by Lhe provlslons of
Lhe law of crlmlnal procedure ln force, shall fall Lo release any prlsoner under arresL or
Lo commlL such prlsoner formally by wrlLLen order conLalnlng a sLaLemenL of Lhe
grounds upon whlch Lhe same ls based."
AlLhough Lhe above quoLed provlslon of arLlcle 204 of Lhe old enal Code has noL been
lncorporaLed ln Lhe 8evlsed enal Code Lhe lmporL of sald words [udlclal auLhorlLy or
offlcer can noL be consLrued as havlng been modlfled by Lhe mere omlsslon of sald
provlslon ln Lhe 8evlsed enal Code.
8esldes, secLlon 1 (3), ArLlcle lll, of our ConsLlLuLlon provldes LhaL "Lhe rlghL of Lhe
people Lo be secure ln Lhelr persons...agalnsL unreasonable selzure shall noL be vlolaLed,
and no warranL [of arresL, deLenLlon or conflnemenL] shall lssue buL upon probable
cause, Lo be deLermlned by Lhe ,+-2% afLer Lhe examlnaLlon under oaLh or afflrmaLlon of
Lhe complalnL and Lhe wlLness he may produce." under Lhls consLlLuLlonal precepL no
person may be deprlved of hls llberLy, excepL by warranL of arresL or commlLmenL
lssued upon probable cause by a [udge afLer examlnaLlon of Lhe complalnanL and hls
wlLness. And Lhe [udlclal auLhorlLy Lo whom Lhe person arresLed by a publlc offlcers
musL be surrendered can noL be any oLher buL courL or [udge who alone ls auLhorlzed Lo
lssue a warranL of commlLmenL or provlslonal deLenLlon of Lhe person arresLed pendlng
Lhe Lrlal of Lhe case agalnsL Lhe laLLer. WlLhouL such warranL of commlLmenL, Lhe
deLenLlon of Lhe person arresLed for Lhan slx hours would be lllegal and ln vlolaLlon of
our ConsLlLuLlon.
Cur concluslon ls conflrmed by secLlon 17, 8ule 109 of Lhe 8ules of courL, whlch,
referrlng Lo Lhe duLy of an offlcer afLer arresL wlLhouL warranL, provldes LhaL "a person
maklng arresL for legal ground shall, wlLhouL unnecessary delay, and wlLhln Lhe Llme
prescrlbed ln Lhe 8evlsed enal Code, Lake Lhe person arresLed Lo Lhe
proper '(+)0 or ,+-2% for such acLlon for Lhey may deem proper Lo Lake," and by secLlon
11 of 8ule 108, whlch reads LhaL "afLer Lhe arresL by Lhe defendanL and hls dellvery Lo
Lhe CourL, he shall be lnformed of Lhe complalnL or lnformaLlon flled agalnsL hlm. Pe
shall also lnformed of Lhe subsLance of Lhe LesLlmony and evldence presenLed agalnsL
hlm, and, lf he deslres Lo LesLlfy or Lo presenL wlLnesses or evldence ln hls favor, he may
be allowed Lo do so. 1he LesLlmony of Lhe wlLnesses need noL be reduced Lo wrlLlng buL
LhaL of Lhe defendanL shall be Laken ln wrlLlng and subscrlbed by hlm.
And lL ls furLher corroboraLed by Lhe provlslons of secLlon 1 and 4, 8ule 102 of Lhe 8ules
of CourL. Accordlng Lo Lhe provlslon of sald secLlon, "a wrlL of "#$%#& '()*+& shall
exLend any person Lo all cases of lllegal conflnemenL or deLenLlon by whlch any person
ls lllegally deprlved of hls llberLy", and "lf lL appears LhaL Lhe person alleged Lo be
resLralned of hls llberLy ls ln Lhe cusLody of an offlcer +3-%) *)('%&& .&&+%- by a courL or
[udge, or by vlrLue of a [udgemenL or order of a courL of record, and LhaL Lhe courL or
[udge had [urlsdlcLlon Lo lssue Lhe process, render [udgmenL, or make Lhe order, Lhe wrlL
shall noL be allowed. "Whlch a '(30)#).( &%3&+ means LhaL, oLherwlse, Lhe wrlL shall be
allowed and Lhe person deLalned shall be released.
1he [udlclal auLhorlLy menLloned ln secLlon 123 of Lhe 8evlsed enal Code can noL be
consLrued Lo lnclude Lhe flscal of Lhe ClLy of Manlla or any oLher clLy, because Lhey
cannoL lssue a warranL of arresL or of commlLmenL or Lemporary conflnemenL of a
person surrendered Lo legallze Lhe deLenLlon of a person arresLed wlLhouL warranL.
(SecLlon 7, 8ule 108, Pashlm 4&. 8oncan, 40 Cff. Caz. 13Lh Supp., p.13, Llno 4&. lugoso,
L-1139, promulgaLed on !anuary 30, 1947, 43 Cff. Caz., 1214). 1he lnvesLlgaLlon whlch
Lhe clLy of flscal of Manlla makes ls noL Lhe prellmlnary lnvesLlgaLlon proper provlded for
ln secLlon 11, 8ule 108, above quoLed, Lo whlch all person charged wlLh offenses
cognlzable by Lhe CourL of llrsL lnsLance ln provlnces are enLlLled, buL lL ls a mere
lnvesLlgaLlon made by Lhe clLy flscal for Lhe purpose of flllng Lhe correspondlng
lnformaLlon agalnsL Lhe defendanL wlLh Lhe proper munlclpal courL or CourL of llrsL
lnsLance of Manlla lf Lhe resulL of Lhe lnvesLlgaLlon so warranLs, ln order Lo obLaln or
secure from Lhe courL a warranL of arresL of Lhe defendanL. lL ls provlded by a law as a
subsLlLuLe, ln a cerLaln sense, of Lhe prellmlnary lnvesLlgaLlon proper Lo avold or prevenL
a hasLy or mallclous prosecuLlon, slnce defendanL charged wlLh offenses Lrlable by Lhe
courLs ln Lhe ClLy of Manlla are noL enLlLled Lo a proper prellmlnary lnvesLlgaLlon.
1he only execuLlve offlcers auLhorlzed by law Lo make a proper prellmlnary lnvesLlgaLlon
ln case of Lemporary absence of boLh Lhe [usLlce of Lhe peace and Lhe auxlllary [usLlce of
Lhe peace from Lhe munlclpallLy, Lown or place, are Lhe munlclpal mayors who are
empowered ln such case Lo lssue a warranL of arresL of Lhe caused. (SecLlon 3, 8ule 108,
ln connecLlon wlLh secLlon 6, 8ule 108, and secLlon 2 of 8ule 109.) 1he prellmlnary
lnvesLlgaLlon whlch a clLy flscal may conducL under secLlon 2, 8ule 108, ls Lhe
lnvesLlgaLlon referred Lo ln Lhe proceedlng paragraph.
under Lhe law, a complalnL charglng a person wlLh Lhe commlsslon of an offense
cognlzable by Lhe courLs of Manlla ls noL flled wlLh munlclpal courL or Lhe CourL of llrsL
lnsLance of Manlla, because as above sLaLed, Lhe laLLer do noL make or conducL a
prellmlnary lnvesLlgaLlon proper. 1he complalnL musL be made or flled wlLh Lhe clLy
flscal of Manlla who, personally or Lhrough one of hls asslsLanLs, makes Lhe
lnvesLlgaLlon, noL for Lhe purpose of orderlng Lhe arresL of Lhe accused, buL of flllng wlLh
Lhe proper courL Lhe necessary lnformaLlon agalnsL Lhe accused lf Lhe resulL of Lhe
lnvesLlgaLlon so warranLs, and obLalnlng from Lhe courL a warranL of arresL or
commlLmenL of Lhe accused.
When a person ls arresLed wlLhouL warranL ln cases permlLLed bylaw, Lhe offlcer or
person maklng Lhe arresL should, as abovesLaLed, wlLhouL unnecessary delay Lake or
surrender Lhe person arresLed, wlLhln Lhe perlod of Llme prescrlbed ln Lhe 8evlsed enal
Code, Lo Lhe courL or [udge havlng [urlsdlcLlon Lo Lry or make a prellmlnary lnvesLlgaLlon
of Lhe offense (secLlon 17, 8ule 109), and Lhe courL or [udge shall Lry and declde Lhe
case lf Lhe courL has orlglnal [urlsdlcLlon over Lhe offense charged, or make Lhe
prellmlnary lnvesLlgaLlon lf lL ls a [usLlce of Lhe peace courL havlng no orlglnal
[urlsdlcLlon, and Lhen Lransfer Lhe case Lo Lhe proper CourL of llrsL lnsLance ln
accordance wlLh Lhe provlslons of secLlon 13, 8ule 108.
ln Lhe ClLy of Manlla, where complalnLs are noL flled dlrecLly wlLh Lhe munlclpal courL or
Lhe CourL of llrsL lnsLance, Lhe offlcer or person maklng Lhe arresL wlLhouL warranL shall
surrender or Lake Lhe person arresLed Lo Lhe clLy flscal, and Lhe laLLer shall make Lhe
lnvesLlgaLlon above menLloned and flle, lf proper, Lhe correspondlng lnformaLlon wlLhln
Lhe Llme prescrlbed by secLlon 123 of Lhe 8evlsed enal Code, so LhaL Lhe courL may
lssue a warranL of commlLmenL for Lhe Lemporary deLenLlon of Lhe accused. And Lhe clLy
flscal or hls asslsLanLs shall make Lhe lnvesLlgaLlon forLhwlLh, unless lL ls maLerlally
lmposslble for Lhem Lo do so, because Lhe LesLlmony of Lhe person or offlcer maklng Lhe
arresL wlLhouL warranL ls ln such cases ready and avallable, and shall, lmmedlaLely afLer
Lhe lnvesLlgaLlon, elLher release Lhe person arresLed or flle Lhe correspondlng
lnformaLlon. lf Lhe clLy flscal has any doubL as Lo Lhe probablllLy of Lhe defendanL havlng
commlLLed Lhe offense charged, or ls noL ready Lo flle Lhe lnformaLlon on Lhe sLrengLh of
Lhe LesLlmony or evldence presenLed, he should release and noL deLaln Lhe person
arresLed for a longer perlod Lhan LhaL prescrlbed ln Lhe enal Code, wlLhouL pre[udlce Lo
maklng or conLlnulng Lhe lnvesLlgaLlon and flllng afLerwards Lhe proper lnformaLlon
agalnsL hlm wlLh Lhe courL, ln order Lo obLaln or secure a warranL of hls arresL. Cf
course, for Lhe purpose of deLermlnlng Lhe crlmlnal llablllLy of an offlcer deLalnlng a
person for more Lhan slx hours prescrlbed by Lhe 8evlsed enal Code, Lhe means of
communlcaLlon as well as Lhe hour of arresLed and oLher clrcumsLances, such as Lhe
Llme of surrender and Lhe maLerlal posslblllLy for Lhe flscal Lo make Lhe lnvesLlgaLlon
and flle ln Llme Lhe necessary lnformaLlon, musL be Laken lnLo conslderaLlon.
1o conslder Lhe clLy flscal as Lhe [udlclal auLhorlLy referred Lo ln arLlcle 123 of Lhe
8evlsed enal Code, would be Lo auLhorlze Lhe deLenLlon of a person arresLed wlLhouL
warranL for a perlod longer Lhan LhaL permlLLed by law wlLhouL any process lssued by a
courL of compeLenL [urlsdlcLlon. 1he clLy flscal, may noL, afLer due lnvesLlgaLlon, flnd
sufflclenL ground for flllng an lnformaLlon or prosecuLlng Lhe person arresLed and
release hlm, afLer Lhe laLLer had been lllegally deLalned for days or weeks wlLhouL any
process lssued by a courL or [udge.
A peace offlcer has no power or auLhorlLy Lo arresL a person wlLhouL a warranL upon
complalnL of Lhe offended parLy or any oLher person, excepL ln Lhose cases expressly
auLhorlzed by law. WhaL he or Lhe complalnanL may do ln such case ls Lo flle a complalnL
wlLh Lhe clLy flscal of Manlla, or dlrecLly wlLh Lhe [usLlce of Lhe peace courLs ln
munlclpallLles and oLher pollLlcal subdlvlslons. lf Lhe ClLy llscal has no auLhorlLy, and he
has noL, Lo order Lhe arresL even lf he flnds, afLer due lnvesLlgaLlon, LhaL Lhere ls a
probablllLy LhaL a crlme has been commlLLed and Lhe accused ls gullLy Lhereof, #
5()0.(). a pollce offlcer has no auLhorlLy Lo arresL and deLaln a person charged wlLh an
offense upon complalnL of Lhe offended parLy or oLher persons even Lhough, afLer
lnvesLlgaLlon, he becomes convlnced LhaL Lhe accused ls gullLy of Lhe offense charged.
In v|ew of a|| the forego|ng, w|thout mak|ng any pronouncement as to the
respons|b|||ty of the off|cers who |ntervened |n the detent|on of the pet|t|oners, for
the po||ceman Dum|ao may have acted |n good fa|th, |n the absence of a c|ear cut
ru||ng on the matter |n be||ev|ng that he had comp||ed w|th the mandate of art|c|e 12S
by de||ver|ng the pet|t|oners w|th|n s|x hours to the off|ce of the c|ty f|sca|, and the
|atter m|ght have |gnored the fact that the pet|t|oners were be|ng actua||y deta|ned
when the sa|d po||ceman f||ed a comp|a|nt aga|nst them w|th the c|ty f|sca|, we ho|d
that the pet|t|oners are be|ng |||ega||y restra|ned of the|r ||berty, and the|r re|ease |s
hereby ordered un|ess they are now deta|ned by v|rtue of a process |ssued by a
competent court of [ust|ce. So ordered.