Court affirms warrant vs. Santos, Griffiths

CEBU, Philippines - The Regional Trial Court has denied the motion for reconsideration filed by Bella Ruby Santos and Ian Charles Griffiths and affirmed the issuance of an arrest warrant against them.

Santos and Griffiths sought to reverse the court’s earlier ruling that found probable cause for the issuance of the warrant of arrest them, but Judge Ester Veloso denied the same and said Santos’ arraignment meant she has waived her right to question the findings of probable cause.

“With the arraignment of the accused, she has effectively abandoned her right to question the court’s finding of probable cause for the issuance of the warrant of arrest against her,” Veloso’s order reads.

Citing the Supreme Court ruling on Adasa V. Abalos, G.R. No. 168617 on February 19, 2007, Veloso said there is no need for the court to determine the existence or non-existence of probable cause when an accused pleads to the charge.

Prosecutors, for their part, said the defense’s omnibus motion “raised the same focal issue the court had already passed upon when it determined the existence of probable cause for the issuance of the warrant of arrest.”

Santos was arrested by the National Bureau of Investigation at a mall in Manila last month while Griffiths is in the United Kingdom.

Meanwhile, after both parties in the case submitted their comments, Veloso said she will now submit for resolution the respondents’ motion to post bail and for the court to hold a marathon hearing of the case, as well as the prosecutors’ motion for the use of a live-link television during trial to protect the minor witnesses.

Defense lawyer Rameses Villagonzalo said the opposing the use of live-link television. He said the defense does not intend to harass the minor witnesses during trial and would want to see the non-verbal gestures as they give their testimony.

Villagonzalo said the minor witnesses may subject to coaching if they would not be made to testify in the judge’s chambers.

“Both accused respectfully submit that all the State’s witnesses are perjured, coached and false including the minors intended to testify against herein accused since all of them are motivated by the reward offered by the prosecution and false sense of sympathy to the Pique family,” the defense’s comment reads.

Villagonzalo added it is the right of an accused to meet the witnesses face to face.

Prosecutor Annabelle Robles said the purpose of live-link television is to protect the identity of the minor witnesses.

She said that since the minor witnesses will testify for the first time, it is necessary that the court use all the means to protect them from trauma and fear to avoid distortion of facts.

“As a first timer, it is not easy to face the crowd inside the court room because of formalities even adults they can fell fear how much more minors witnesses,” Robles said.

In a related development, defense lawyer Julius Caesar Entise also said the accusations of the police that they bribed the prosecutions witnesses are all false. He challenged the police to execute a sworn affidavit to know the truthfulness of the matter. (FREEMAN)