GR L 15474; (August, 1960) (Digest)
G.R. No. L-15474; August 31, 1960
ALFREDO B. SAULO, petitioner-appellant, vs. BRIG. GENERAL PELAGIO CRUZ, ETC., respondent-appellee.
FACTS
Petitioner Alfredo B. Saulo, after evading arrest since 1950 for three criminal cases, sought refuge at the Indonesian Embassy on November 12, 1958. The Embassy surrendered him to the Philippine Government on November 18, 1958, and he was placed in the custody of the Philippine Constabulary at Camp Crame, Quezon City. After posting bail for two remaining criminal cases, his release was withheld by respondent Brig. General Pelagio Cruz due to a new complaint, Criminal Case No. 46410 for violation of the Anti-Subversion Act (Republic Act No. 1700), filed on November 19, 1958, before the Court of First Instance of Manila for preliminary investigation. On December 23, 1958, Saulo filed a petition for habeas corpus with the Supreme Court, alleging his detention without a warrant for this new case was illegal. The Supreme Court issued the writ, making it returnable to the Court of First Instance of Manila. The lower court, after submission on the pleadings, denied the petition, ruling that the filing of the criminal case constituted a delivery of the accused to the proper court under the Rules. Saulo appealed this decision.
ISSUE
Whether the appeal from the decision of the Court of First Instance denying the petition for habeas corpus was filed on time.
RULING
No, the appeal was filed out of time and must be dismissed. The Supreme Court held that under Section 18, Rule 41 of the Rules of Court, an appeal in a habeas corpus case must be perfected within twenty-four (24) hours from notice of the judgment. The records showed Saulo’s notice of appeal was filed eleven (11) days after service of the lower court’s decision. The reglementary period for appeal is jurisdictional, and an appeal filed out of time may be dismissed at any stage. The Court rejected Saulo’s contention that the lower court’s decision was merely recommendatory because the writ was originally issued by the Supreme Court but made returnable to the lower court. The court to which the writ is returned has full authority to examine and settle all issues on the merits, and its decision, if not timely appealed, becomes final. Consequently, the Supreme Court dismissed the appeal.