Wednesday, July 23, 2008 Criminal case filed vs Bacal By Annabelle L. Ricalde
FINALLY, a case of reckless imprudence resulting to homicide with damage to property was filed Tuesday against embattled Councilor Alden Bacal.
Filed over two weeks after the fatal road accident, the controversial case, however, appears to be tilting in favor of Councilor Bacal as the parents of the 15-year-old victim have reportedly filed an affidavit of desistance.
Bacal had earlier confirmed reaching an out of court settlement with Gerardo and Regie Balingit, whose son Junrie was killed in a vehicular accident last July 10.
The case also appears to be weak: the police report did not include information on whether the councilor was under influence during the incident, and did not clearly specify whether it was Bacal or the victim who was encroaching on each other's driving lane.
It reported, instead, that the victim was the one who bumped into the councilor's Toyota Revo.
Vice Mayor Vicente Emano -- who was the first person Bacal approached for help right after leaving the victim dead -- had earlier said that the councilor was reeking of liquor when the latter came to his house for help.
Bacal also admitted he had been drinking hours before the early morning accident, but insisted he was not drunk when the incident occurred.
Adding more complications to the report, the traffic investigator told Sun.Star Cagayan de Oro the councilor was "clearly at fault" being the one who encroached on the driving lane of the victim, who at that time was riding a bicycle.
"Klaro kaayo nga sala ni Kagawad Bacal ka naka-kawat man siya sa driving lane sa bata (Councilor Bacal was clearly at fault because he encroached on the driving lane of the minor)," said SPO1 Rogelio Borromeo, traffic division investigator of the Cagayan de Oro City Police Office (Cocpo), who is handling the case.
Even though he believes that the case would not prosper because the Balingits have already executed an affidavit of desistance, SPO1 Borromeo said they were compelled to file the case because of "pressure." He declined to elaborate.
But Lawyer James Judith questioned the validity of the affidavit of desistance signed by Junrie's parents, saying it would not hold water if it was not done with proper authority.
In Philippine Jurisprudence, an affidavit of desistance is executed by a complainant who no longer wishes to pursue a case against an accused or a defendant in a court case, he said.
Judith said such legal document must be executed before the Prosecutor's Office.
Nevertheless, as the legal counsel of the Balingits, he said he will pursue the criminal aspect of the case -- insisting that the out of court settlement reached earlier only covers Bacal's civil liabilities.
"I'm still the lawyer of the family so I'd still be there on the hearing," Judith told Sun.Star Cagayan de Oro.
He said he will also have the police investigated for allegedly bungling the investigation. (With reports from DVAIII)
