Vital Matters to Remember in the Issuance of a Warrant of Arrest

In the issuance of a warrant of arrest against a person criminally charged in court, the following vital matters need to be kept in mind, to wit:

"First . . . the determination of [the existence of] probable cause by the prosecutor is for a purpose different from that which is to be made by the judge. Whether there is reasonable ground to believe that the accused is guilty of the offense charged and should be held for trial is what the prosecutor passes upon. The judge, on the other hand, determines whether a warrant of arrest should be issued against the accused, i.e. whether there is a necessity for placing him under immediate custody in order not to frustrate the ends of justice. . .

Judicial Determination of Probable Cause for the Purpose of Issuing a Warrant of Arrest : Is There a Need for the Complete Records of the Case to Have Already Been Forwarded to the Trial Court?

Still in connection with Search and Seizure, I am sharing here the ruling of the High Tribunal in the case of Roberts vs. CA, G.R. No. 113930, March 5, 1996. We look into the ponencia first, then the dissent of Justice Puno.

Search Warrants : Examination Under Oath or Affirmation of the Applicant and His Witnesses

Today, I am sharing my notes on one of the requisites of a valid search warrant: examination under oath or affirmation of the applicant and his witnesses. I compiled most of these notes in the course of my preparation for my Constitutional Law 2 class. I enriched them after a family friend’s dwelling house was searched by agents of the Criminal Investigation and Detection Group (CIDG) by virtue of a search warrant issued by an RTC judge from another local government unit. (But that is another story better left for another entry.)

The constitutional and legal basis for the requirement

Sec. 2, Article III of the 1987 Constitution provides: “The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects against unreasonable searches and seizures of whatever nature and for any purpose shall be inviolable, and no search warrant or warrant of arrest shall issue except upon probable cause to be determined personally by the judge after examination under oath or affirmation of the complainant and the witnesses he may produce, and particularly describing the place to be searched and the persons or things to be seized.”