Bill of rights

Question 1

Rights that belong to every citizen of the state or country, to all its inhabitants and are not connected with the organization or administration of government.

Answer 1

Civil Rights

Question 2

Right to participate, directly or indirectly, in the establishment of government.

Answer 2

Political Rights

Question 3

“A law which hears before it condemns, which proceeds upon inquiry and renders judgment only after trial.”

Answer 3

Due Process

Question 4

All persons or things similarly situated should be treated alike, both as to rights conferred and responsibilities imposed. Natural and juridical persons are entitled to this guarantee, but with respect to artificial persons, they enjoy the protection only insofar as their property is concerned.

Answer 4

EQUAL PROTECTION OF THE LAWS

Question 5

It may be invoked only by the person entitled to it (Stonehill v. Diokno). As such the right may be waived (Lopez v Commissioner of Customs) either expressly or impliedly (People v. Malasugui) but the waiver must be made by the person whose right is invaded, not by one who is not duly authorized to effect such waiver. (People v. Damaso)

Answer 5

The Right is Personal

Question 6

Probable cause is defined as the existence of such facts and circumstances as would excite the belief in a reasonable mind, acting on the facts within the knowledge of the prosecutor, that the person charged was guilty of the crime for which he was prosecuted. Probable cause need not be based on clear and convincing evidence of guilt, or on evidence establishing guilt beyond reasonable doubt, and definitely not on evidence establishing absolute certainty of guilt, but it certainly demands more than bare suspicion and can never be left to presupposition, conjecture, or even convincing logic. (Cuasay v. Sandiganbayan, G.R. Nos. 227282-87, September 21, 2022)

Answer 6

Preliminary Investigations

Question 7

The Court has established the following requisites for a valid search warrant:
(1) it must be issued based on a finding of probable cause;
(2) probable cause must be determined personally by the judge;
(3) the judge must examine under oath or affirmation the complainant and the witnesses he or she may produce; and
(4) the warrant must particularly describe the place to be searched and the persons or things to be seized. (People v. Mamino, G.R. No. 257213, August 31, 2022)

Answer 7

Search Warrants

Question 8

In People v. Tee, it was held that the requirement is primarily mean to enable the law enforcers serving the warrant to:

1.Readily identify the properties to be seized and thus prevent them from seizing the wrong items; and

2.Leave said peace officers with no discretion regarding the articles to be seized and thus prevent unreasonable searches and seizures.

Answer 8

Particularity of descriptions

Question 9

Search of house, room, or premises, to be made in presence of two witnesses.
— No search of a house, room or any other premise shall be made except in the presence of the lawful occupant thereof or any member of his [or her] family or in the absence of the latter, two witnesses of sufficient age and discretion residing in the same locality.

Answer 9

Sec. 8, Rule 126 of the Rules of Court provides:

Question 10

Rule 113 of the Revised Rules of Criminal Procedure provides for the circumstances under which a warrantless arrest is lawful, viz.:

Answer 10

Warrantless Arrests

Question 11

is a form of entrapment in which the violator is caught in flagrante delicto and the police officers conducting the operation are not only authorized but duty-bound to apprehend the violator and to search him for anything that may have been part of or used in the commission of the crime.

Answer 11

Buy-bust operation

Question 12

Every ticket issued to a passenger by the airline or air carrier concerned shall contain among others the following condition printed thereon, “Holder hereof and his hand-carried luggage(s) are subject to search for, and seizure of, prohibited materials or substances. Holders refusing to be searched shall not be allowed to board the aircraft,” which shall constitute a part of the contract between the passenger and the air carrier.

Answer 12

Searches of passengers at airports

Question 13

A checkpoint search may either be a mere routine inspection, or it may involve an extensive search. For a mere routine inspection, the search is normally permissible when it is limited to a mere visual search, where the occupants are not subjected to a physical or body search.

Answer 13

Checkpoint search

Question 14

On the other hand, when the ___________ and subjected to an extensive search, It would be constitutionally permissible only if the officers conducting the search had reasonable or probable cause to believe, before the search that either the motorists is a law offender or they will find the instrumentality of evidence pertaining to a crime in the vehicle to be searched.

Answer 14

vehicle is stopped

Question 15

In People v. Barros, the silence of the accused was not construed as consent; rather, it was a “demonstration of regard for the supremacy of the law. In this case the warrantless search was declared invalid because there was no showing of any circumstance which constituted probable cause for the peace officers to search carton. Neither did the officers receive any information or “tip-off” from an informer; nor did they contend that they detected the odor of dried marijuana.

Answer 15

No waiver

Question 16

authorizes the seizure and presentation as evidence of objects that fall in the “plain view” of an officer “who has a right to be in the position to have that view.” For the successful invocation of the doctrine, the prosecution must satisfy the following requirements:
(a) the law enforcement officer in search of the evidence has a prior justification for an intrusion or is in a position from which [they] can view a particular area;
(b)the discovery of the evidence in plain view is inadvertent; and
(c)it is immediately apparent to the officer that the item [they observe] may be evidence of a crime, contraband[,] or otherwise subject to seizure.

Answer 16

Plain view doctrine

Question 17

In People v. Aruta, the Court invalidated the search and seizure made on a woman “Aling Rose”, who, upon alighting from a bus, was pointed out by the informant. The Supreme Court declared that in a search and seizure as an incident to a lawful arrest, it is necessary for probable cause to be present, and probable cause must be based on reasonable ground of suspicion or belief that a crime has been committed or is about to be committed. In this case, the accused was merely crossing the street and was not acting in any manner which would engender a reasonable ground to believe that she was committing or about to commit a crime.

Answer 17

Invalid Search and Seizure

Question 18

Evidence obtained in violation of Sec. 2, Art. III, shall be inadmissible for any purpose in any proceeding, because it is the ” fruit of the poisoned tree.”

Answer 18

Exclusionary Rules

Question 19

This right must always be applied in light of the special characteristics of the school environment. While the Campus Journalism Act provides that a student shall not be expelled or suspended solely on the basis of articles he or she has written, the same should not infringe on the school’s right to discipline its students

Answer 19

Right of students to free speech in school premises not absolute

Question 20

If the assembly is to be held in a public place, a permit for the use of such place, and not for the assembly itself, may be validly required. But the power of local officials in this regard is merely one of regulation, not prohibition. (Prmicias v. Fugoso)

Answer 20

Assembly in a public place

Question 21

In Imbong v. Ochoa, on the challenge to the constitutionality of a number of provisions in R.A. 10354, otherwise known as the Responsible Parenthood and Reproductive Health Act of 2012, the Supreme Court admitted that it cannot determine whether or not the use of contraceptives or participation in support of modern RH measures is ;
a.Moral from a religious standpoint; or
b.Right or wrong according to one’s dogma or belief.
However, the Court has the authority to determine whether the law contravenes the constitutional guarantee of religious freedom.

Answer 21

The RH Law Controversy

Question 22

In Villavicencio v. Lukban, the “deportation” of some 170 women of ill repute to Davao on orders of the Mayor of Manila was held unlawful.
Art. 13. Universal Declaration of Human Rights, and Art. 12 Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, provide that everyone has the right of freedom of movement and residence within the border of each State.

Answer 22

Liberty of abode and travel

Question 23

Interest of national security;
Public safety;
Public Health.

Answer 23

Limitations on right to travel

Question 24

1.The hold departure order is but an exercise of the respondent court’s inherent power to preserve and maintain the effectiveness of its jurisdiction over the case and over the person of the accused;
2.By posting bail, the accused hold herself amenable at all times to the orders and processes of the court, thus, she may be legally prohibited from leaving the country during the pendency of the case.

Answer 24

Lawful Order

Question 25

In Legaspi v. Civil Service Commission, it was held that while the manner of examining the public records may be subject to a reasonable regulation by the government agency in custody thereof, the duty to disclose the information of public concern, and to afford access to public records, cannot be discretionary on the part of the agencies.

Answer 25

Right to Information

Question 26

The right to strike. However, even if the provision expressly guarantees the right to form unions in public and private sectors, members of the civil service may not declare a strike to enforce economic demands. (Alliance of Government Workers v. Ministry of Labor and Employment)
As held in Bangalisan v. Court of Appeals, the ability to strike is not essential to the right of association.

Answer 26

Right to form associations

Question 27

Free access to courts and quasi-judicial bodies and adequate legal assistance shall not be denied to any person by reason of poverty.

Answer 27

Free access to Courts

Question 28

Sec. 12, Art. III. Any person under investigation for the commission of an offense shall have the right to be informed of his right to remain silent and to have competent and independent counsel preferably of his own choice. If the person cannot afford the services of counsel, he must be provided with one. These rights cannot be waived except in writing and in the presence of counsel.
No torture, force, violence, threat, intimidation or any other means which vitiates the free will shall be used against him. Secret detention places, solitary, incommunicado, or other similar forms of detention are prohibited.

Answer 28

Miranda Doctrine

Question 29

Any confession or admission obtained in violation of this or Section 17 hereof shall be inadmissible in evidence against him
The law shall provide for penal and civil sanctions for violations of this section, as well as compensation to and rehabilitation of victims of torture or similar practices, and their families.

Answer 29

Miranda Doctrine

Question 30

The rights guaranteed in Sec. 12, Art. III, exists only in custodial investigation or in custody interrogation of accused persons.
In People v Judge Ayson, which has been defined as “any questioning initiated by law enforcement officers after a person has been taken into custody or otherwise deprived of his freedom of action in any significant way.”
The rule begins to operate at once as soon as the investigation ceases to be a general inquiry into an unsolved crime, and direction is then aimed upon a particular suspect who has been taken into custody and to whom the police would then direct interrogatory questions which tend to elicit incriminating statements.

Answer 30

Rights are available only during custodial investigation

Question 31

Any extrajudicial confession made by a person arrested, detained or under custodial investigation shall be in writing and signed by such person in the presence of his counsel, or in the latter’s absence, upon a valid waiver, and in the presence of any parents, older brothers and sisters, his spouse, the municipal mayor, the municipal judge, district school supervisor, or priest or minister of the gospel as chosen by him, otherwise such extrajudicial confession shall be inadmissible as evidence in any proceeding.

Answer 31

Rights cannot be waived except in writing and signed by the person in the presence of his counsel

Question 32

security given for the release of a person in custody of the law, furnished by him or a bondsman, conditioned upon his appearance before any court as may be required.

Answer 32

Right to bail

Question 33

When charged with an offense punishable by reclusion perpetua or higher and evidence of guilt is strong.
Traditionally, the right to bail is not available to the military. In Arula v. Espino, where the Court observed that the right to speedy trial is given more emphasis in the military where the right to bail does not exist. The denial of the right to bail to the military does not violate the equal protection clause, because there is substantial distinction between the military and civilians.

Answer 33

Exceptions

Question 34

No person shall be held to answer for a criminal offense without due process of law.
In all criminal prosecutions, the accused shall be presumed innocent until the contrary is proved, and shall enjoy the right to be heard by himself and counsel, to be informed of the nature and cause of the accusation against him, to have a speedy, impartial and public trial, to meet the witnesses face to face and to have compulsory process to secure the attendance of witnesses and the introduction of evidence in his behalf.

Answer 34

Constitutional Rights of the Accused

Question 35

Every circumstance favoring the innocence of the accused must be taken into account. The proof against him must survive the test of reason; the strongest suspicion must not be permitted to sway judgment. (People v Austria)

Answer 35

Presumption of innocence

Question 36

Section 14(2), Article III42 of the 1987 Constitution guarantees the right of the accused in all criminal prosecutions to be informed of the nature and cause of the accusation against him or her

Answer 36

Right to be informed of the nature and cause of the accusation against him

Question 37

invoked by the petitioner is applicable only where the evidence adduced by the parties are evenly balanced, in which the constitutional presumption of innocence should tilt the scales in favor of the accused. (Corpus v. People)

Answer 37

Equipoise rule

Question 38

A writ issued by a court directed to a person detaining another, commanding him to produce the body of the prisoner at a designated time and place, with the day and cause of his caption and detention, to do, to submit to, and to receive whatever the court or judge awarding the writ shall consider in his behalf.

Answer 38

Habeas Corpus

Question 39

No person shall be compelled to be a witness against himself.
As a rule, it may be invoked only when and as the question calling for an incriminating answer is asked, since the witness has no way of knowing in advance the nature or effect of the question to be put to him. This is true, however only of an ordinary witness.

Answer 39

Self-incrimination

Question 40

No person shall be imprisoned for debt or non-payment of a poll tax.
While the debtor cannot be imprisoned for failure to pay his debt, he can be validly punished in a criminal action if he contracted his debt through fraud, as his responsibility arises not from the contract of loan, but from the commission of the crime. (Lozano v. Martinez)

Answer 40

Non-impairment for debt

Question 41

No person shall be twice put in jeopardy of punishment for the same offense. If an act is punished by a law and an ordinance, conviction or acquittal under either shall constitute a bar to another prosecution for the same act.

Answer 41

Double Jeopardy

Question 42

Law that makes a criminal an action done before the passage of the law and which was innocent when done, and punished such action;
Law that aggravates a crime, or makes it greater than it was when committed;

Answer 42

Ex post facto law and Bill of Attainder

Question 43

It is a legislative act that inflicts punishment without trial.

Answer 43

Bill of Attainder

Question 44

A refugee is any person who is outside the country of his nationality, of if he has no nationality, the country of his former habitual residence, because he has or had well-founded fear of prosecution by reason of his race, religion, nationality or political opinion and is unable or, because of such fear, is unwilling to avail himself of the protection of the government of the country of his nationality, or if he has no nationality, to return to the country of his former habitual residence.

Answer 44

Who are refugees and the basis for their rights?

Question 45

Persons not considered as nationals by any state under the operation of its laws. Stateless persons are those who do not have a nationality. They are either: (a) De jure stateless persons - those who have lost their nationality, if they had one, and have not acquired a new one; and (b) De facto stateless persons - those who have a nationality but to whom protection is denied by their state when out of the state.

Answer 45

Who are considered as stateless persons?