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Apr
21
Looks like it’s not yet over for “Alabang Boys”; Automatic review of case made valid
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From manilatimes.net:
THE Office of the President has the authority to automatically review all decisions and resolutions involving the dismissal of illegal drug cases, including the controversial Alabang Boys controversy.
This after the Court of Appeals (CA) declared as valid and legal the automatic review that was undertaken by the Office of the President over the 2009 resolution of the Department of Justice on the so-called “Alabang boys” who were eventually absolved of illegal drug charges due to a technicality.
In a 12-page decision penned by Associate Justice Noel Tijam, the CA’s Eighth Division dismissed the petition for certiorari filed by suspect Richard Brodett for being moot and academic.
The CA ruling said the President’s action was legal as it was made “by virtue of Administrative Order Nos. 252 and 253, which were validly issued by former President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo pursuant to Section 17, Article VII of the 1987 Constitution.”
Associate Justices Romeo Barza and Edwin Sorongon both concurred with Tijam’s ruling.
The case caught public attention after government prosecutors were accused of bribery charges, and led to several congressional hearings.
Then President Arroyo directly ordered an automatic review of the case after a fact-finding probe was made.
Arroyo subsequently overturned the ruling that led to the filing of the cases in court against the three suspects—Brodett, Jorge Joseph and Richard Tecson.
While the case is pending before the court, Brodett sought redress before the appeals court alleging that the Office of the President has no power to review a case that has been already dismissed by the DOJ.
However, in its decision, the CA said that “our Constitution expressly granted the President the control power over the executive department.”
The CA decision said, “As the chief executive, the president represents the government as a whole and sees to it that all laws are enforced by the officials and employees of his department.
“Hence, AO Nos. 252 and 253 were validly issued by President Arroyo to determine the truthfulness of the alleged bribery committed by her subordinates and to ensure that the laws they sought to implement were faithfully executed,” it added.
Guerrero found serious lapses by the arresting agents of the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA) in the custody of the illegal drugs seized from the accused.
According to Guerrero, “the link in the custody of the drug evidence” as required by Section 21 of the Comprehensive Dangerous Drugs Act of 2002, “was broken.”
The three young men were arrested in a buy-bust operation by the PDEA in the posh Ayala Alabang Village in Muntinlupa City on Sept. 19, 2008 for allegedly selling 60 pieces of Ecstacy tablets worth P750 each to an agent.
Another “Alabang boys” member—Tecson—is still behind bars for a drug case that is yet to be resolved by a Quezon City court.
Oct
20
House acts to prevent ‘Alabang Boys’ repeat
Filed Under Las Piñas, Muntinlupa, News, Paranaque | Leave a Comment
From Malaya.com.ph:
THE House of Representatives has approved on final reading a bill amending the Comprehensive Dangerous Drugs Act 2002 to avoid the dismissal of drug charges due to mere violation of custody and disposition of evidence like what happened in the case of the “Alabang Boys.”
“This is to provide clear procedures for the custody and disposition of dangerous drugs thereby preserving the evidentiary value of confiscated items. To prevent the dismissal of drug cases due to the failure of law enforcers to follow the stringent requirements of Section 21 of RA No. 9165,” Speaker Feliciano Belmonte Jr. said.
Under House Bill 4660, the presence of one witness to a drug bust and the inventory of seized drugs will be sufficient to prove the arrest and filing of charges against a suspected narcotics dealer.
The present set-up requires at least three witnesses from the media, Department of Justice and an elective public official during the inventory of drugs or drug paraphernalia after a raid or bust.
HB 4660 also removes the 24-hour ultimatum for a forensic laboratory to present certifications of the seized substances and allows physical inventory of seized items to be conducted at the place where the search warrant is served, at the nearest police station or at the nearest office of the apprehending officer.
Belmonte said the proposed law is needed because “bungling a drug case to favor the suspected drug trafficker will have to be dealt with seriously.”
The bill was approved following a decision of Muntinlupa Regional Trial Court Branch 24 Judge Juanita Guerrero to dismiss charges against Richard Brodett and Jorge Joseph because of the prosecution’s failure to preserve the evidence.
In her decision, Guerrero cited the failure of the prosecution to establish the links in the chain of custody of the illegal drugs that were allegedly confiscated from Brodett and Joseph when they were arrested for alleged possession and sale of 60 “ecstasy” tablets in a raid in Alabang, Muntinlupa City on Sept. 20, 2008. – Wendell Vigilia
Oct
20
From Philstar.com:
MANILA, Philippines – The Philippine Drug Enforcement (PDEA) suffered another blow in its legal fights against the so-called “Alabang Boys after the Supreme Court (SC) dismissed its petition for review of the local court’s decision to acquit two of the three suspects.
The PDEA questioned before the SC the Muntinlupa Regional Trial Court’s (RTC) order to release the Honda Accord of Richard Brodett during the time the drug case against him is being heard in court. Brodett, along with Jorge Joseph, was acquitted by the Muntinlupa RTC from the drug charges filed by the PDEA in 2008.
The local court cited PDEA’s mishandling of evidence in the acquittal.
In a 14-page ruling, the SC First Division said that although the high court agreed with the PDEA and the Office of the City Prosecutor that the evidence should not have been returned while the case was still pending, the SC cannot reverse and set aside the decision of the RTC and the Court of Appeals (CA) because Brodett was acquitted of drug charges on August 26, 2011.
Nevertheless, the SC sternly advised all the courts nationwide to strictly comply with the provision of Section 20 of Republic Act No. 9165, otherwise known as the Comprehensive Dangerous Drugs Act of 2002, and not to release the pieces of evidence, whether they are drugs or non-drugs evidence while the case is being heard or even before the court promulgates the decision even if the evidence is owned by a third party, who is not involved in the case. Concurring with the ruling were Associate Justices Teresita Leonardo-De Castro, Mariano Del Castillo, Jose Portugal Perez and Jose Catral Mendoza.
Bersamin also directed SC Spokesman and Court Administrator Jose Midas Marquez to disseminate to all RTCs the SC decision for their guidance.
Brodett and Joseph were arrested by PDEA agents for the alleged possession of 60 ecstasy pills during a sting operation in September 2008.
During the case’s hearing, a PDEA forensic chemist said that the supposed drugs seized from the two were turned over to her for laboratory analysis. She said that she held the tablets for 16 hours to complete the analysis.
The court said that, however, while the tablets were supposedly being subjected to laboratory analysis, the same pieces of evidence were presented by then PDEA chief Dionisio Santiago to the media during a press conference.
Sep
5
Appeal vs. “Alabang Boys”, an uphill battle – DOJ chief
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By Edu Punay (The Philippine Star) Updated September 03, 2011 12:00 AM
MANILA, Philippines – Justice Secretary Leila de Lima admitted yesterday that the decision to appeal the acquittal of two of the three “Alabang boys’” by the Muntinlupa Regional Trial Court is an “uphill move.”
“We feel it’s worth filing a motion for reconsideration, worth taking that remedy – although it’s an uphill thing because it’s not allowed in the general rule,” she told reporters.
Richard Brodett and Jorge Joseph, who were arrested by agents of the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA) in Ayala Alabang Village in 2008, were acquitted by Muntinlupa Judge Juanita Guerrero of drug trafficking charges for lack of evidence.
Asked about the chances of the lower court reconsidering its decision, De Lima replied: “Let’s just wait and see.”
Under the double jeopardy rule in the Constitution, an accused acquitted by the court can no longer be tried for the same crime.
The only exemption so far to this rule was the case of the members of the defunct Aviation Security Command tagged in the assassination of the late Sen. Benigno Aquino Jr. on Aug. 21, 1983.
De Lima moved to challenge the rule after a closed-door meeting with the prosecution panel handling the case and former PDEA chief Dionisio Santiago and Maj. Ferdinand Marcelino, leader of the team responsible for arresting Brodett, Joseph and another accused Joseph Tecson.
“We cannot just accept what we believe is an error committed by the judge just because there’s this double jeopardy rule. Remember that the acquittal was not because they (Brodett and Joseph) are innocent,” she stressed.
The justice chief lamented how the judge went “over technical” in focusing on the issue of chain of custody of evidence.
De Lima said they would argue that there was no break in the chain of custody of evidence, contrary to the findings of the court.
“The judge made a lot of fuss about the press conference held by Gen. Santiago and Maj. Marcelino. The forensic chemist clearly explained this issue twice during trial – that what was presented during the press con was representative samples only, which is allowed in the law,” she explained.
The DOJ chief earlier said that they would question how the court made a complete turnaround on the handling of the evidence seized by the PDEA from Brodett and Joseph.
She also cited an earlier ruling of the court junking the motion to post bail filed by the accused, where Judge Guerrero even found “the evidence as strong to warrant the conviction of the accused.”
“To warrant a conviction, it’s practically saying already the guilt is beyond reasonable doubt,” she stressed.
Meanwhile, PDEA Director General Undersecretary Jose Gutierrez Jr. yesterday welcomed the DOJ plan to appeal the acquittal of Brodett and Joseph.
“It’s a positive development,’” Gutierrez said.
He said the sudden turn of events helped lift the morale of drug enforcement officers who risk their lives every time they conduct anti-drug operations.
He thanked the DOJ for supporting the anti-drug campaign.
The court said the arrest of the two high-profile suspects was valid but noted that the chain of custody of evidence had been broken, resulting in the acquittal of the accused.
Gutierrez said that the PDEA would extend to the DOJ all necessary assistance in filing a motion for reconsideration. – With Reinir Padua
Aug
25
Court acquits 2 “Alabang Boys”
Filed Under Muntinlupa, News | 2 Comments
From abs-cbn.com:
MANILA, Philippines (UPDATE) – A Muntinlupa Trial Court judge on Friday acquitted Richard Brodett and Jorge Joseph, two of the controversial “Alabang Boys”, of violating the Comprehensive Dangerous Drugs Act of 2002. Judge Juanita T. Guerrero of Muntinlupa Regional Trial Court Branch 204 issued the verdict Friday morning.
In her decision, the judge said the prosecution failed to establish the links in the chain of custody of drugs taken from Brodett and Joseph during their arrest nearly 3 years ago.
The judge also pointed out inconsistencies in the testimony of the prosecution witness.
Brodett and Joseph, both members of prominent families, were arrested by elements of the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency Special Enforcement Service in Ayala Alabang, Muntinlupa on September 20, 2008 after several buy-bust operations.
Joseph Tecson was also arrested in a follow-up operation conducted in Quezon City.
Authorities recovered 60 tablets of ecstasy, cocaine and marijuana from the three.
Report from Jorge Cariño, ABS-CBN News
