November 23 massacre update: Judge to decide on inhibition
Pending the resolution of the Recusation (motion to inhibit) filed by the defense, a Philippine local court indefinitely suspended last 24 February 2010 the hearing on the petition for bail of the key suspect in the Maguindanao massacre case.
The lawyers of prime suspect Andal “Unsay” Ampatuan Jr. want another judge to replace presiding judge Jocelyn Solis-Reyes of the Regional Trial Court Branch 221 in Quezon City, accusing her of “ineptness and misconduct” as well as alleged bias.
The 9 February 2010 motion said: “It is respectfully prayed that the presiding judge desist from further trying the case by affirming her immediate recusal as accused Andal Ampatuan Jr. perceives her to be technically unprepared to rule on objections during trial, and thus does not expect her to act on balance in the evaluation of the evidence and the final resolution of both the bail incident, and the resolution of these cases.”
The prosecution opposed the motion, saying it was “sham and self-serving” because Unsay and his lead counsel Philip Sigfrid Fortun’s arguments focused only on the transcript of stenographic notes in the 27 January 2010 bail hearing while ignoring the four others (5, 13, and 20 January 2010 and 3 February 2010).
Filed 23 February 2010, the joint comment and/or opposition said the “piecemeal out-of-context citations” of cases by the defense was a “hopeless attempt to impute misconduct where there is none.”
The prosecution said it had yet to receive a copy of the recusation and the supplemental motion for recusation as of hearing date and so had to obtain an advance copy from the court itself.
“Under Rule 15, Section 6[1] of the Rules of Court, this simple fact is adequate ground to oppose having said Recusation set for hearing as the same is nothing but a piece of paper unworthy of judicial cognizance,” the joint comment/opposition said.
Reyes will be deciding on the motion for recusation after the defense has filed its reply 10 days from receipt of the joint comment/opposition. The prosecution has five days from receipt of the reply to file its rejoinder should it wish to.
Meanwhile, the court granted the prosecution’s motion to correct clerical errors in the amended information of the consolidated murder charges against Ampatuan Jr. and 196 other people. The corrections include adding names of other accused.
The court also noted the prosecution’s manifestation that the motions filed by the mayor of Datu Saudi Ampatuan municipality Saudi Ampatuan Jr. and Police Superintendent Abdulwahid Pedtucasan were “premature” because it has yet to resolve the prosecution’s motion to admit an amended information.
Saudi filed a motion to suspend proceedings and to hold in abeyance the issuance of a warrant of arrest while Pedtucasan filed a motion for determination of probable cause.
[1] Sec. 6. Proof of service necessary. – No written motion set for hearing shall be acted upon by the court without proof of service thereof.
Comments are closed.