G.R. No. 43195; August 23, 1935
FELIPE GONZALES, petitioner-appellant, vs. FLORENTINO C. VIOLA and VALENTIN MANIQUIS, respondents-appellees.

FACTS

Petitioner Felipe Gonzales was arrested and detained in the municipal jail of San Miguel, Bulacan, on January 18, 1935. A criminal complaint was filed against him on the same day, and he was released on bail at about 8 p.m. When his petition for a writ of habeas corpus was heard in the Court of First Instance, he was already out on bail. The lower court denied his petition, ruling that his detention was legal.

ISSUE

Whether a person who is out on bail and not in actual physical confinement is entitled to a writ of habeas corpus.

RULING

No. The Supreme Court affirmed the denial of the petition. The writ of habeas corpus is only available when a person is actually deprived or restrained of liberty. The restraint must be actual or physical, not merely moral. A person released on bail is not under such physical restraint as to justify the issuance of the writ. Since Gonzales was already on bail at the time of the hearing, he was not under the requisite restraint of liberty.

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