Long-playing cycle

The Kuratong multiple murder case is a graphic illustration of how slow the wheels of justice grind in this country. It demonstrates how the rules of procedure intended to speed up delivery of justice may become the very tools to slow it down to a snail’s pace. It proves the age old belief lurking in the minds of many that attaining the lofty aims of judicial rules entirely depends on the intentions of the persons implementing them.

The Kuratong massacre happened way back on May 18, 1995. Since then the case had gone through so many twists and turns. A series of legal maneuvers effectively prevented the case from reaching first base. The tactics employed disclosed the obviously great fear of the accused on the consequences of their trial and their undisguised plan to wear down the relatives of the victims and their witnesses until they lose all hope of ever getting justice, become unavailable, or disappear, or their memories grow dim or they change their minds for a million or more reasons. The passage of time might likewise increase the possibility of loss or disappearance of the physical evidence.

This latest episode alone started about four years ago way back on March 17, 1999 when Lacson and his co-accused asked the then Regional Trial Court (RTC) Judge Agnir, who later became a Court of Appeals Justice, the same thing they recently asked RTC Judge Yadao – the judicial determination of probable cause for the issuance of warrant of arrest. Coincidentally, both Judges, Agnir on March 29, 1999 and Yadao on November 12, 2003, not only determined that there was no probable cause to issue the warrant but went on to dismiss the charges outright. The only difference in the action of the two judges is that then Judge Agnir dismissed the charges after calling and examining the complaining witnesses who executed affidavits of desistance, while Judge Yadao apparently did not examine the witnesses anymore and just proceeded to dismiss the case based on the evidence submitted by the prosecution consisting of sworn statements of new witnesses which she found "full of loopholes making the accusation loss credible and bereft of merit".

In the case dismissed by then Judge Agnir on March 29, 1999, Lacson was merely accused as an accessory. But on June 6, 2001 eleven criminal informations for multiple murder involving the Kuratong killings were refiled against Lacson as principal and some thirty-three other accused before the RTC of Q.C. that was raffled off to Judge Yadao. Lacson questioned before the Appellate Courts this refiling as already beyond the two year time bar imposed by the Rules of Court. The Court of Appeals ruled in his favor on Aug. 24, 2001 (that was quite fast). But on Oct. 7, 2003, the Supreme Court finally reversed the CA ruling and declared that the refiling is not covered by the two year time bar. Hence it was remanded back to the RTC and it once more fell into the sala of Judge Yadao despite a re-raffle (the strange coincidences are simply amazing). So the two years of review by the appellate courts was actually a waste of time in favor of Lacson, since Judge Yadao would have apparently dismissed the case after all had Lacson not elevated it to the higher courts. And now the dismissal of Judge Yadao is about to take the same route once again as the dismissal of then Judge Agnir. The long playing cycle is getting nastier and nastier and more frustrating.

To break this virulent cycle, the prosecution perhaps should opt not to dwell further on the grave abuse of discretion of Judge Yadao. The people already know that without any official findings from the higher courts. Unless the prosecution has other overriding reasons, it would be more expeditious to just refile the case hoping that it would fall in the sala of a Judge who would be more sympathetic to finding out the whole truth instead of merely junking the case because of a finding that the prosecution evidence is "less credible" without even considering the evidence of the other side. If there is no such judge anymore, then justice for the Kuratong victims will just be a mirage. It will confirm the long standing perception that the scale in our justice system tilts heavily in favor of the rich, influential and powerful, be they the offenders or the victims.

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