QC eyes changes to justice hall after hostage-taker’s jump

MANILA, Philippines - The administrator of the Quezon City Hall of Justice is mulling changes both in government protocol and the design of the structure after a suspect in a hostage taking jumped from the fourth floor of the building Wednesday.

Engineer Bernardo Abesamis told The STAR yesterday that he will issue a memorandum requiring concerned agencies to handcuff suspects behind the back when entering the building.

He said the measure, which seeks to limit the movement of suspects brought to the justice hall, would only cover those who will undergo inquest proceedings.

The engineer also said he will look into possible changes in the design of the railings to prevent similar incidents in the future.

Abesamis said they might increase the height of the railings to prevent people from jumping off the higher floors of the justice hall. He noted that most people inside the building have high emotions due to the cases that they are possibly involved in.

On Wednesday, a man who stabbed his mother and took his relatives hostage earlier this week jumped from the fourth floor of the building prior to his inquest at the office of the city prosecutor.

Jerry Lo, 22, was handcuffed in front when he managed to slip past his two police escorts and jump off the railing at the center of the building.

He landed on the roof of the building’s canteen at the ground floor, which collapsed on Elvira Guerzon, a traffic enforcer for the city government’s department of public order and safety.

Lo and Guerzon both survived the incident. The suspect sustained head injuries, while the traffic enforcer is feared to have suffered spinal injuries as she was not able to move her lower extremities after the fall.

Not the first time

Abesamis said Wednesday’s incident was not the first time a person jumped from the hall of justice building.

An earlier STAR report said a man arrested for malicious mischief jumped off from the fourth floor of the building on Oct. 8, 2010. He survived.

Jonathan Castor was rushed to the Quirino Memorial Medical Center due to head injuries, the report said.

It said the incident happened while the suspect was waiting to be charged before the office of the city prosecutor. He was arrested for allegedly throwing a stone at the windshield of a Metropolitan Manila Development Authority vehicle.

Meanwhile, court employees said another suspect was hurt after he jumped from the stairs at the back of the building several years ago, while another stood on the railings and threatened to commit suicide by jumping.

He later calmed down and was talked into stepping down from the railings, said the court employees.

Abesamis said the offices of the city prosecutors will soon be transferred to the new Department of Justice building beside the justice hall.

The space that will be vacated on the fourth floor will be turned into courtrooms, he said.

Charges filed

Meanwhile, Assistant City Prosecutor Ramoncito Ocampo said he recommended the filing of serious illegal detention and attempted murder charges against Lo.

He went to the East Avenue Medical Center on Wednesday where the suspect was brought to proceed with the inquest proceedings. He said the suspect was unconscious when the inquest was conducted.

Lo was later transferred by his family to Jose Reyes Memorial Medical Center in Manila.

Ocampo said the city government and Guerzon may file additional charges against Lo for the damages that he caused after jumping off the fourth floor of the building.