Case Digest (G.R. No. 254838)
Facts:
Jessica Lucila G. Reyes v. Director or Whoever Is in Charge of Camp Bagong Diwa, Taguig, Metro Manila, and JCInsp. Wena Fe Dalagan, Warden, Taguig City Jail Female Dormitory, G.R. No. 254838, May 22, 2024, First Division, Hernando, J., writing for the Court.On June 5, 2014 an Information charged petitioner Jessica Lucila G. Reyes with Plunder. By an Order of Commitment dated July 9, 2014, the Sandiganbayan directed the Bureau of Jail Management and Penology to take custody of petitioner, and she was confined at the Taguig City Jail‑Female Dormitory (Camp Bagong Diwa) from that date. Petitioner filed a petition for habeas corpus dated January 13, 2021, asserting nearly nine years of detention and a violation of her constitutional right to a speedy trial.
Following full briefing on the habeas corpus petition, the Court issued a Resolution on January 17, 2023 granting the petition and ordering petitioner’s immediate release subject to stringent conditions (personal attendance at Sandiganbayan hearings, quarterly reports to the Sandiganbayan clerk, travel authority and reporting requirements, and quarterly reports to the Supreme Court). The Court expressly found that, although the commitment order was lawful, petitioner’s continued detention had become oppressive and infringed her right to liberty because of protracted proceedings in the principal case.
The Office of the Solicitor General (OSG) filed an Omnibus Motion dated February 3, 2023 seeking reconsideration of the January 17, 2023 Resolution. The OSG argued that the Resolution’s classification under the Court’s internal rules was erroneous, that habeas corpus was not an available remedy, that the Court improperly relied on the precedent Conde v. Rivera, and that there were compelling reasons to deny r...(Subscriber-Only)
Issues:
- Does the Omnibus Motion dated February 3, 2023 merit reconsideration of this Court’s January 17, 2023 Resolution granting the petition for habeas co...(Subscriber-Only)
Ruling:
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Ratio:
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Doctrine:
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