Under new rules on criminal procedures issued by the Department of Justice (DOJ), it will no longer be the courts who will conduct preliminary investigations on complaints filed before prosecution offices as well as conduct inquest proceedings for those arrested without warrant.
Last week, the DOJ issued Department Circular No. 015 dated July 16, 2024 which hands over the authority over the preliminary investigations and inquest proceedings to prosecutors, who will determine if charges should be filed in court.
Previously, provincial or city prosecutors, judges of the municipal trial courts, national and regional state prosecutors, and “other officers as may be authorized by law” were among the officers authorized to conduct the PI.
Recognizing the authority of the DOJ to promulgate its own rules on preliminary investigations, the Supreme Court recently ruled that the affected provisions of Rule 112 (Preliminary Investigation) of the 2000 Revised Rules on Criminal Procedure will be deemed repealed with the promulgation of the 2024 DOJ-National Prosecution Service (NPS) Rules on Preliminary Investigations and Inquest Proceedings.
In the En Banc Resolution, the High Court said that given DOJ’s prerogative to direct and control the conduct of preliminary investigations, the Court will not interfere as long as there is no grave abuse of discretion.
Justice Undersecretary Raul Vasquez was quoted as saying that the high court’s amendment would fast-track the trial process since the motion for judicial determination of probable cause would now be removed.
This means that all prosecutors are now empowered to take the lead in criminal investigations, ensuring that there is proper and sufficient case build-up before filing in court, he added.
The new rules also require that prima facie evidence with a reasonable certainty of conviction is needed by prosecutors and law enforcement officers to ensure that only cases with a strong foundation will proceed to trial, this reducing frivolous suits and malicious prosecutions.
This will not lead to abuses as prosecutors are now required to sign a certification indicating that the case they filed has a complete set of evidence.
If the certification is proven wrong, the erring prosecutor would be held accountable before the Prosecution Integrity Board, which will monitor the manner, timeliness, and the potential of abuses.
The new procedure also allows the submission of additional documents, enabling a more comprehensive examination of the case during the preliminary probe, the DOJ said.
The inquest proceedings also provide a detailed process for handling warrantless arrests, including the filing of referral letters, submission of required evidence, provisional determination of arrest validity, and submission of lacking evidence.
The new rules also allow the use of technology like video conferencing in conducting preliminary investigation as well as the submission of affidavits through the Information and Communications Technology Center (ICTC) portal.