GR 12473; (September, 1917) (Digest)
G.R. No. 12473 ; September 18, 1917
THE UNITED STATES, plaintiff-appellee, vs. LOO HOE, defendant-appellant.
FACTS:
In April 1916, the appellant, Loo Hoe, was convicted for violating the Opium Law by the Court of First Instance of Sulu. The court sentenced him to deportation, which was duly executed. However, in August 1916, Loo Hoe returned to the Philippine Islands in violation of the deportation order. A new complaint was filed against him for this act. Upon arraignment in the Court of First Instance, he pleaded guilty and was sentenced to four months of imprisonment, followed by another deportation, and to pay costs. Loo Hoe appealed this conviction.
ISSUE:
Whether or not the appellant’s act of returning to the Philippines in violation of a final sentence of deportation constitutes contempt of court under Section 232 of Act No. 190 (the Code of Civil Procedure).
RULING:
No. The Supreme Court ruled that the violation of a final judgment in a criminal case, such as a completed sentence of deportation, does not constitute contempt under Section 232 of Act No. 190 . The Court distinguished between orders or judgments issued during the pendency of an action (particularly in equitable proceedings like injunctions) and final judgments that completely dispose of a case. The power to punish for contempt under the statute pertains to the former and not to the latter. Once a final criminal judgment like deportation is executed, the court loses jurisdiction over the defendant for that case. The proper remedy for the executive department is to re-arrest and re-deport the individual to enforce the original sentence, not to initiate a new contempt proceeding. The Court also found that the penalties for jail-breaking under the Penal Code were not applicable to the act of violating a deportation order. Consequently, the sentence of the lower court was revoked. The appellant was ordered to be delivered to the proper executive authorities for the execution of the original deportation sentence.
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