Supreme Court. INQUIRER PHOTO / NINO JESUS ORBETA
The Supreme Court is set to amend the Rules of Court to remove the authority of trial court officers to conduct a preliminary investigation (PI) in determining probable cause to warrant a person鈥檚 arrest.
Justice Undersecretary Raul Vasquez said on Monday that the amendment would create a 鈥渘ew paradigm鈥� in which the PI becomes the 鈥渟ole and exclusive domain鈥� of the Department of Justice (DOJ).
Under Rule 112 of the Rules of Court, PI determines whether there is probable cause for an accused to undergo trial.
鈥榃别补辫辞苍颈锄补迟颈辞苍鈥�
Provincial or city prosecutors, judges of the municipal trial courts, national and regional state prosecutors, and 鈥渙ther officers as may be authorized by law鈥� are among the officers authorized to conduct the PI.
Vasquez said the high court鈥檚 amendment would fast-track the trial process since the motion for judicial determination of probable cause would now be removed.
鈥淕one would be the days of frivolous cases, harassment suits, or weaponization of penal laws,鈥� he said.
鈥淲e are truly hopeful that only quality cases would be filed鈥攁 development that cuts across the pillars of criminal justice by lowering the dockets in the law enforcement, prosecution, judiciary and corrections clusters,鈥� he added.
Justice zones
The DOJ official spoke of the plan during Monday鈥檚 launch of the Dagupan City Justice Zone in Pangasinan province.
In a 鈥渏ustice zone,鈥� key reforms in the delivery of justice are set in place to maximize coordination among different agencies such as the DOJ, the Department of the Interior and Local Government and the Supreme Court, according to Chief Justice Alexander Gesmundo, who led the launch.
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鈥淚t streamlines coordination and enables real-time collaboration among local justice sector institutions, allowing them to better identify common issues and find solutions together, and making the delivery of justice more efficient and effective,鈥� he said.
Gesmundo said the first justice zone in the country was launched in Quezon City in 2014.
Since then, 12 more justice zones have been established in key cities across the country, namely Cebu, Davao, Angeles, Bacolod, Naga, Calamba, Balanga, Baguio, Zamboanga, Tagaytay, Puerto Princesa and now Dagupan.