Villarosa files unjust judgment case vs Quezon City judge

Claiming that he was a victim of an unjust court decision, former Oriental Mindoro Rep. Jose Villarosa yesterday filed a complaint against Quezon City Judge Ma. Theresa Yadao for rendering an “unjust judgment” before the Department of Justice.

Rendering an unjust judgment is penalized under Article 204 (knowingly rendering unjust judgment), Chapter Two (Malfeasance and Misfeasance in Office) of the Revised Penal Code. It is punishable by imprisonment of six months and one day to 12 years and perpetual disqualification from public office.

In his five-page complaint affidavit, Villarosa accused Yadao, the presiding judge of the Quezon City Regional Trial Court Branch 81 of manifesting partiality towards the complainants and deliberately disregarding his testimony and the evidence he had presented during the trial.

Villarosa said Yadao “blindly relied” on the extra-judicial confession of Eduardo Hermoso, a co-accused in the case, despite the fact that the prosecution had failed to present any evidence to prove his participation in the alleged meeting of Oct. 7, 2007 where the alleged conspiracy to kill the two sons of his political rival, Ricardo Quintos, was hatched.

“How can Judge Yadao conclude that I may have been in the said meeting without any evidence? Clearly here aforecited conclusion is the product of mere conjectures, surmises and presumptions which is contrary to law and established jurisprudence. A decision must only be based on facts and law,” Villarosa said in his complaint.

Last March 8, the Court of Appeals (CA) acquitted Villarosa and three others of the double murder charges filed against them in connection with the gruesome killing of the two sons of Quintos on Dec. 13, 1997.

Aside from Villarosa, the CA also acquitted and ordered the release from detention of Ruben Balaguer, Gelito Bautista and Mario Tobias for lack of evidence to establish their guilt beyond reasonable doubt.

In an 118-page decision penned by Associate Justice Noel Tijam, the Court’s Fifth Division “affirmed in part and reversed in part” the Feb. 3, 2006 ruling of the Regional Trial Court of Quezon City, Branch 81, convicting seven individuals, including Villarosa, for the murder of brothers Michael and Paul Quintos.

It noted that the killing of the Quintos brothers was not politically motivated but may have something to do with the feud between the Quintos family and their farmers who have been asserting their claims over the Golden Country Farms Inc. (GFCI).

However, the appellate court affirmed the lower court’s decision insofar as it found guilty beyond reasonable doubt accused Eduardo Hermoso, Manolito Matricio and Josue Ungsod of two counts of murder, qualified by treachery, with aggravating circumstance of evident premeditation.