Case Digest (G.R. No. 132875-76)
Facts:
People of the Philippines v. Romeo G. Jalosjos, G.R. Nos. 132875-76, February 03, 2000, Supreme Court En Banc, Ynares-Santiago, J., writing for the Court. The accused-appellant, Romeo G. Jalosjos, a sitting Member of the House of Representatives, had been convicted by the Regional Trial Court of Makati of two counts of statutory rape and six counts of acts of lasciviousness; that judgment of conviction was on appeal to the Supreme Court when he filed the motion at issue.While his conviction was pending appeal and he remained confined in the national penitentiary, Jalosjos moved before the Supreme Court for permission to fully discharge his congressional duties — specifically to attend legislative sessions and committee meetings — notwithstanding his incarceration. He grounded the motion on the "mandate of sovereign will" (his re-election), asserted that his constituents were being deprived of representation, and pointed to prior temporary leave grants by the trial court and prison authorities (for committee hearings, medical treatment, voter registration, and participation in work-volunteer programs) as precedent for permitting attendance at congressional proceedings.
The Office of the People of the Philippines opposed the motion. The Court considered constitutional provisions on legislative immunity and equal protection, prior precedents (including Martinez v. Morfe and other decisions addressing privileges of legislators and the nature of imprisonment), and the history of the immunity-from-arrest clauses in the 1935, 1973 and 1987 Constitutions. The Supreme Court resolved the motion by denying it. Justice Gonzaga-Reyes filed a separate concurring o...(Subscriber-Only)
Issues:
- Whether a Member of the House of Representatives who has been validly convicted and is incarcerated pending appeal may, by virtue of election and the "mandate of sovereign will," be allowed to attend legislative sessions and committee meetings despite confinement.
- Whether the constitutional privilege from arrest granted to members of Congress exempts the accused-appellant from confinement where he was convicted of statutory rape, an o...(Subscriber-Only)
Ruling:
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Ratio:
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Doctrine:
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