Case Digest (G.R. No. L-19633)
Facts:
People of the Philippines, Hermogenes Concepcion, Jr., as City Fiscal of Manila, Manuel R. Pamaran, as Investigating Assistant Fiscal and Jose G. Lukban, Director, National Bureau of Investigation v. The Hon. Eulogio Mencias of the Court of First Instance of Rizal, Martiniano Abad and Cosme P. Garcia, G.R. No. L-19633, November 28, 1966, the Supreme Court En Banc, Regala, J., writing for the Court.On January 2, 1962 the City Fiscal of Manila received a criminal complaint filed by the Department of Justice against Martiniano Abad and Cosme P. Garcia, together with several directors of Continental Oil Company, for alleged violations of Sec. 17-1/2 of Act No. 1459 and Sec. 5 of R.A. No. 3019; the complaint (I.S. No. 62-202) arose from the company’s purchase of a lot from Xavier School, Inc. which the DOJ alleged was outside the corporation’s purpose clause.
While the City Fiscal was conducting preliminary investigation, on January 17, 1962 one Gus B. Dodds filed a minority-stockholder civil suit (Civil Case No. 6935, Court of First Instance of Rizal) seeking to enjoin the directors from proceeding with a conditional deed of sale; Martiniano Abad and Cosme P. Garcia intervened in that civil action on January 24, 1962 and filed a third-party complaint against the petitioners asking, among other relief, that the petitioners be enjoined from continuing the Manila preliminary investigation on the ground that a prejudicial civil question existed.
On January 25, 1962 the respondent judge of the Court of First Instance of Rizal issued an ex parte restraining order enjoining the petitioners from proceeding with the investigation. The petitioners moved to dissolve that restraining order (filed January 30, 1962) arguing lack of jurisdiction to enjoin a preliminary investigation conducted in Manila. After hearing, the CFI denied the motion to dissolve on March 20, 1962 and directed the issuance of the writ of preliminary injunction; a writ of preliminary injunction issued April 5, 1962.
The petitioners brought a petition for certiorari and prohibition with preliminary injunction to the Supreme Court seeking to enjoin enforcement of the CFI orders. This Court issued on April 11, 1962 a writ of preliminary injunction staying enforcement of the CFI orders and required respondent judge to answer. The City Fiscal scheduled further investigatory hearings in April 1962 but those were postponed by respondents. Various motions followed in the Supreme Court and CFI, which the Court deferred pending final resolution. The central q...(Subscriber-Only)
Issues:
- Did the Court of First Instance of Rizal have jurisdiction to issue a restraining order and writ of preliminary injunction enjoining the City Fiscal of Manila from proceeding with the preliminary investigation of the criminal complaint?
- Even assuming a prejudicial civil question existed, could a court properly grant an injunction to restrain a criminal prosecutio...(Subscriber-Only)
Ruling:
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Ratio:
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Doctrine:
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