SECOND DIVISION
[G.R. No. 206965. March 9, 2016.]
PEOPLE OF THE PHILIPPINES, plaintiff-appellee, vs. EMMA BOFILL PANGAN, accused-appellant.
NOTICE
Sirs/Mesdames :
Please take notice that the Court, Second Division, issued a Resolution dated09 March 2016 which reads as follows:
"G.R. No. 206965: PEOPLE OF THE PHILIPPINES v. EMMA BOFILL PANGAN
Accused-Appellant Emma Bofill Pangan (Pangan) was convicted by the Court of Appeals 1 for illegal possession of dangerous drugs (methamphetamine hydrochloride) weighing 14.16 grams, 2 in violation of Section 11 3 of Republic Act No. 9165, otherwise known as the Comprehensive Dangerous Drugs Act of 2002.
While detained, Pangan suffered from "profuse vaginal bleeding accompanied by severe abdominal pain." 4 She consulted with a medical doctor from the Correctional Institute for Women. 5
On November 13, 2015, Dr. Lila A. Dacuma (Dr. Dacuma), Medical Officer II of the Correctional Institute for Women, prescribed Tranexamic Acid, Mefenamic Acid, and Ferrous Sulfate to Pangan for three (3) days. 6 These provided Pangan temporary relief, but the bleeding still persisted. 7 Pangan was diagnosed with T/C Myoma Uteri with [Abnormal Uterine Bleeding]. 8 Dr. Dacuma recommended that she be referred to the Rizal Medical Center "for further evaluation and management[,]" 9 where the "duration of treatment and follow-up check-up [was to] depend upon the attending physician." 10 Pangan had the same complaint in 2012, during which she was also examined at Rizal Medical Center. 11
Likewise, on November 13, 2015, the members of the Correctional Institution for Women Inmate Hospitalization Board reviewed and examined Pangan's medical records and recommended her regular medical check-up. 12 In Board Resolution No. 030-15, 13 they stated that "[d]elay in evaluation of [Pangan's] illness may cause further pains, injuries and life threatening illness to [her]." 14
In the 1st Indorsement 15 dated November 24, 2015, Correctional Institution for Women Officer-in-Charge Elsa Aquino-Alabado forwarded to Ricardo Rainier G. Cruz III (Director General Cruz III), Director General of the Bureau of Corrections, Dr. Dacuma's Memorandum dated November 13, 2015. 16 The Memorandum contained enclosures and recommended the approval of Pangan's Regular Referral to Rizal Medical Center. 17 Pangan's hospitalization would be "subject to [the Department of Justice's] Hospitalization Guidelines and existing prison rules and regulations." 18
In the 2nd Indorsement 19 dated November 26, 2015, Director General Cruz III forwarded to Secretary of Justice Alfredo Benjamin S. Caguioa the request for Pangan's regular hospital referral to Rizal Medical Center, subject to prison rules and regulations as well as to the following conditions:
1. A physician from the [New Bilibid Prison] Hospital/[Prison and Penal Farm]s medical officer shall, within seven (7) days from the inmate's temporary release from prison, conduct an independent and periodic evaluation of the treatment provided the inmate-patient, his/her response to the medical procedure made and of the determination made by the attending physician; and
2. In the conduct of his/her medical evaluation, the physician from the NBP Hospital/PPFs medical officer shall have the final authority to determine, notwithstanding the contrary opinion of the attending physician, whether the inmate-patient is fit for discharge from the medical institution and to be returned to his [or her] place of confinement.
All medical expenses to be incurred by the inmate-patient shall be shouldered by the inmate, of nearest family member, or through financial assistance from government or private institutions.
A Post-Hospitalization report shall be submitted for His Honor's information, immediately thereafter. 20
In the 3rd Indorsement 21 dated December 15, 2015, the Department of Justice referred the 2nd Indorsement dated November 26, 2015 to this court's Clerk of Court, Third Division for appropriate action. 22 The Department of Justice stated that it wanted to be advised regarding the action taken on the matter. 23
WHEREFORE, this court resolves to APPROVE the request for outside medical referral of accused-appellant Emma Bofill Pangan. She shall be brought to the Rizal Medical Center for treatment immediately after this Resolution is received by her or the Director General of the Bureau of Corrections, subject to the following conditions:
(1) Pangan shall be referred to Rizal Medical Center, a government hospital along Pasig Blvd. in Pasig City. She shall be provided with at least two (2) escort guards; 24
(2) Pangan shall be accompanied by a member of the prison's medical staff during her referral for outside medical consultation/treatment; 25
(3) A physician from the Correctional Institute for Women shall, within seven (7) days from Pangan's temporary release from prison for outside medical examination, treatment, or hospitalization, conduct an independent and periodic evaluation of the treatment Pangan was provided, her response to the medical procedure, and the determination made by the attending physician;
(4) In the conduct of his/her medical evaluation, the physician from the Correctional Institute for Women shall have the final authority to determine, notwithstanding the contrary opinion of the attending physician, whether Pangan is fit for discharge from the medical institution to be returned to her place of confinement;
(5) All medical expenses to be incurred by Pangan shall be shouldered by her, her nearest family member, or through financial assistance from government or private institutions;
(6) Extraordinary security measures shall be taken by prison authorities to prevent any possible escape;
(7) Pangan shall be returned immediately, as soon as the purpose has been served, to the Correctional Institution for Women in Mandaluyong City, during daylight hours; 26 and
(8) The Director General of the Bureau of Corrections shall submit to this court a post-hospitalization report containing: (a) Pangan's medical certificate, (b) diagnosis, (c) duration of treatment and follow-up check-up, and (d) plan of management, among others. The report shall be submitted two (2) weeks from notice and upon Pangan's return to the Correctional Institution for Women.
Let copies of this Resolution be given to accused-appellant Emma Bofill Pangan, the Office of the Solicitor General, the Correctional Institution for Women, the Bureau of Corrections, and the Department of Justice.
SO ORDERED."
(Brion, J., on leave.)
Very truly yours,
(SGD.) MA. LOURDES C. PERFECTODivision Clerk of Court
Footnotes
1. Rollo, pp. 3-17, Court of Appeals Decision. The Decision, docketed as CA-G.R. CR-H.C. No. 00747, was penned by Associate Justice Ramon Paul L. Hernando and concurred in by Associate Justices Carmelita Salandanan-Manahan and Zenaida T. Galapate-Laguilles of the Twentieth Division.
2. Id. at 3.
3. Rep. Act No. 9165 (2002), sec. 11 provides:
Sec. 11. Possession of Dangerous Drugs. — The penalty of life imprisonment to death and a fine ranging from Five hundred thousand pesos (P500,000.00) to Ten million pesos (P10,000,000.00) shall be imposed upon any person, who, unless authorized by law, shall possess any dangerous drug in the following quantities, regardless of the degree of purity thereof:
xxx xxx xxx
Otherwise, if the quantity involved is less than the foregoing quantities, the penalties shall be graduated as follows:
1) Life imprisonment and a fine ranging from Four hundred thousand pesos (P400,000.00) to Five hundred thousand pesos (P500,000.00), if the quantity of methamphetamine hydrochloride or "shabu" is ten (10) grams or more but less than fifty (50) grams[.]
4. Rollo, p. 42, Bureau of Corrections' Correctional Institution for Women's Memorandum dated November 13, 2015.
5. Id.
6. Id.
7. Id. at 43, Medical Abstract dated November 13, 2015.
8. Id.
9. Id. at 42, Bureau of Corrections' Correctional Institution for Women's Memorandum dated November 13, 2015.
10. Id. at 44, Certification dated November 13, 2015.
11. Id. at 42, Bureau of Corrections' Correctional Institution for Women's Memorandum dated November 13, 2015.
12. Id. at 45, CIW Inmate Hospitalization Board Resolution No. 030-15. CIW's Inmate Hospitalization Board was chaired by Dr. Lila A. Dacuma, with members Dorothy C. Bernabe, Edna T. Miranda, Eleanor L. Vengco, Mary Rose B. Chavez, Elen May L. Besa, and Daisy-Jane T. Pangpang.
13. Id.
14. Id.
15. Id. at 41.
16. Id.
17. Id. at 42, Bureau of Corrections' Correctional Institution for Women's Memorandum dated November 13, 2015.
18. Id. at 43, Medical Abstract dated November 13, 2015.
19. Id. at 38-39.
20. Id.
21. Id. at 37.
22. Id.
23. Id.
24. Bureau of Corrections Operating Manual, Book II, part V, sec. 13 (a) (i).
25. Bureau of Corrections Operating Manual, Book I, part V chapter 2, sec. 10.
26. Bureau of Corrections Operating Manual, Book II, part V, sec. 13 (a) (i).