Supreme Court Circular No. 033-96 outlines guidelines for police witnesses and the arrest of accused individuals who jump bail. It mandates that notices of hearings or subpoenas be sent to both the police witnesses and their commanding officers at least 30 days in advance. Additionally, warrants of arrest must include a physical description of the accused, and bail companies are required to maintain records of clients who jump bail. Judges are encouraged to prioritize police witness testimonies, minimize postponements, and impose penalties on non-compliant police witnesses. The guidelines are effective immediately.
April 24, 1996
SUPREME COURT CIRCULAR NO. 033-96
| TO | : | All Judges |
| SUBJECT | : | Joint Memorandum Circular of the Supreme Court, the Department of Justice and the Department of the Interior and Local Government on the Guidelines on Police Witnesses and Arrest of Accused Who Jumped Bail |
For the information and guidance of all concerned, quoted hereunder are the pertinent provisions of the Joint Memorandum Circular of the Supreme Court, the Department of Justice and the Department of the Interior and Local Government on the guidelines on police witnesses and arrest of accused who jumped bail, to wit: ECSHID
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Section 1. The Supreme Court, through the Office of the Court Administrator, shall:
A. Require all Clerks of Court that:
(1) In the preparation of the notice of hearing/subpoena, copies of the same shall not only be sent to the office and residence addresses of the police witness concerned but also to his/her commanding officer's or immediate superior officer's address;
(2) In case several police witnesses are summoned to attend a scheduled hearing, all of them shall be furnished individually of copies of the notice of hearing/subpoena;
(3) In all cases, notice of the hearing/subpoena shall be sent at least thirty (30) days prior to the scheduled hearing to the police witness and his/her commanding officer or immediate superior officer;
(4) In issuing the warrants of arrest, the pictures of the accused, whenever available or feasible, or a summary of the physical description of the accused, must be appended to the warrants before the same are transmitted to the law enforcement agencies for service; and
(5) Companies or entities engaged in the business of bailing out accused persons shall maintain a personal data file of all their clients, particularly those who jumped bail, and make these data available to law enforcement operatives once a warrant is issued for their arrest.
B. Remind and advise all Judges: cHESAD
(1) To give preference in time to the testimony of the police witness than other witness;
(2) To avoid unnecessary postponements of hearing, especially when the police witness present comes from far-flung police unit or station;
(3) Not to be too lenient or liberal in accepting the explanation of police witnesses who fail to attend scheduled hearings despite due notice to them;
(4) To impose the maximum penalty to police witnesses and their superiors when warranted, if the explanation of the offending witness should be found unsatisfactory; and
(5) To inform the head of the law enforcement agency to which the offending witness belongs of the sanction imposed against the said witness for further administrative action.
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Section 5. This Joint Memorandum Circular shall take effect immediately.
11 January 1996, Malacañang, Manila. cSHIaA
(SGD.) ERNANI CRUZ PAÑOCourt Administrator