CA clears Reyes brothers

MANILA, Philippines - The Court of Appeals (CA) yesterday cleared former Palawan governor Joel Reyes and his brother Coron, Mayor Mario Reyes in the murder of broadcaster and environmentalist Gerry Ortega on Jan. 24 last year.

The CA voided the reinvestigation of the Department of Justice (DOJ) where a second panel of prosecutors reversed the findings of an earlier panel that approved the indictment of the Reyes brothers over a technicality.

The CA declared as null and void Department Order No. 710 issued by Justice Secretary Leila de Lima in September last year creating another panel of investigating prosecutors to accept new evidence on charges against the Reyes brothers that were already dismissed by an earlier panel created through Department Order No. 091.

In a 36-page decision, the CA’s special fifth division said the DOJ committed grave abuse of discretion amounting to lack or excess of jurisdiction.

The CA said the manner of reinvestigation conducted by the DOJ that led to the filing of the murder case against the Reyes brothers was “procedurally flawed.”

The appellate court explained that the DOJ violated rules of court and its own rules when it created a new panel to reinvestigate the complaint when a petition for review of the resolution of the original panel dismissing the charges against the Reyes brothers was already pending with the office of the Secretary of Justice.

“A review of the antecedents herein would tell us that the Secretary of Justice simply shied away from discharging her power to review, modify, alter or nullify the resolution of the DO-091 which she could very well have done motu proprio even without conducting another investigation,” read the ruling penned by Associate Justice Leoncia Real-Dimagiba.

“When she created the DO-710 panel, she blatantly disregarded Rule 112 of the Rules of Court and the 2000 National Prosecution Service Rule on Appeal which are the DOJ’s bibles in the conduct of preliminary investigation,” it added.

Associate Justice Myra Garcia-Fernandez concurred while Associate Justice Ramon Cruz submitted a separate concurring opinion.

The CA said that under the rules, a reinvestigation on a complaint should be held by the same prosecutor that conducted the preliminary investigation. The DOJ can only assign new fiscals to handle the reinvestigation if there is compelling reason, which the appellate court said was not present in this case.– With Sandy Araneta