GR 115576; (August, 1994) (Digest)
G.R. No. 115576. August 4, 1994.
IN THE MATTER OF THE PETITION FOR HABEAS CORPUS OF LEONARDO PAQUINTO AND JESUS CABANGUNAY. CHAIRMAN SEDFREY A. ORDOÑEZ, ET AL., AND THE COMMISSION ON HUMAN RIGHTS, petitioners, vs. DIRECTOR OF PRISONS, respondent.
FACTS
Leonardo Paquinto and Jesus Cabangunay, civilians tried and convicted by military commissions during martial law, had their death sentences commuted to reclusion perpetua. Their convictions were nullified by the Supreme Court in Olaguer v. Military Commission No. 34, which held military tribunals lacked jurisdiction over civilians when civil courts were functioning. Subsequently, in Cruz v. Ponce Enrile, the Court directed the Department of Justice (DOJ) to file corresponding informations in civil courts within 180 days. No charges were filed against Paquinto and Cabangunay, yet they remained detained. Their complaint to the UN Human Rights Committee was declared admissible. The DOJ, citing lost records, failed to prosecute but intimated no objection to a habeas corpus petition.
ISSUE
Whether the continued detention of Paquinto and Cabangunay without any pending criminal charges or valid conviction is lawful.
RULING
The Supreme Court GRANTED the petition and ordered the immediate release of Paquinto and Cabangunay. The legal logic is anchored on the fundamental right to liberty and the absence of any legal basis for continued detention. The Court rejected the government’s arguments. First, the excuse of lost records cannot justify indefinite detention, as the detainees are not at fault for the government’s failure to preserve evidence. Second, the claim that the detainees opted to serve their sentences and seek clemency was disproven; they disowned the alleged counsel who made this representation and pleaded for release based on Olaguer. The Court emphasized that the nullification of their convictions by military tribunals stripped their detention of legal foundation. Since the DOJ failed to file charges within the period mandated by Cruz, and no legitimate prosecution is possible, their detention became arbitrary. Liberty is an inherent human right, not a government grant. When deprivation of liberty lacks legal cause, the writ of habeas corpus must issue. The detainees, having been held since 1974 without a valid conviction or pending case, are entitled to freedom.