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Friday, March 19, 2004
Sitoy’s candidacy stalls strafing case
By ROSE O. VERSOZA
Sun.Star Staff Reporter
THE trial of the criminal case against the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) 7 operatives and civilian agents involved in the December 2002 strafing incident in Mandaue City was again brought to a standstill.
The Mandaue Regional Trial Court (RTC) suspended indefinitely the proceedings of the case until the Court of Appeals (CA) shall have resolved the issue concerning the appearance of lawyer Adelino Sitoy as private prosecutor or until the preliminary injunction issued by the CA last Feb. 4 shall have been clarified.
Defense lawyer Joey Wee, during the scheduled hearing yesterday, pointed out that the CA resolution, in effect, prohibits the RTC and the parties from proceeding with the trial of the case “with or without Sitoy.”
The CA did not specify that the RTC should proceed with the trial and that Sitoy should be allowed to participate in the proceedings as private prosecutor, said Wee.
“Stated otherwise, with or without Sitoy, do not proceed. This is what the CA is telling us,” said RTC Branch 56 Judge Augustine Vestil as he concurred with Wee’s interpretation of the CA resolution.
Absent
Sitoy, who is running for Cebu vice governor, was not present during the hearing.
He earlier filed a motion for the cancellation and resetting of the hearing after the elections as he is “occupied with his campaign preparation.”
The CA resolution, which was signed by Justices Edgardo Cruz, Ruben Reyes and Noel Tijam, merely enjoined the parties from enforcing the two orders Vestil issued last Sept. 25, 2003 and Oct. 1, 2003.
Vestil’s first order ruled that Sitoy is prohibited from appearing as private prosecutor as only the Ombudsman lawyers are authorized to prosecute the case.
The second order affirmed the first order and, at the same time, ruled that the trial of the case will proceed with or without Sitoy.
Sitoy and the Office of the Ombudsman-Visayas questioned both orders before the CA.
The CA, in granting the preliminary injunction, said the immediate enforcement of the two RTC orders would render the pending petition moot and academic.
“Indeed the crux of the petition hinges on whether respondent judge correctly prohibited the offended parties from intervening in the criminal case through a private prosecutor,” the CA said.
Serious
While the prosecution is ready to proceed with the case and present their witness yesterday, Ombudsman Prosecutor Macaundas Hadjirasul said the issue raised by Wee is serious.
All agreed
Afraid that they would be cited for contempt if they proceed with the case, the court, the prosecution and the defense all agreed to suspend the proceedings of the case indefinitely or until the CA shall have made a ruling on the main petition concerning the propriety of Sitoy’s participation as private prosecutor.
Hadjirasul, though, assured the court that they will seek for a clarification of the CA resolution.
Both the prosecution and the defense want the CA to clarify whether its order was meant to entirely stop the proceeding until the resolution of the issue or whether it was only meant to prohibit the RTC from hearing the case without Sitoy’s participation.
(March 19, 2004 issue)
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