Case Digest (G.R. No. 164974)
Facts:
Charlie Te v. Hon. Augusto V. Breva, G.R. No. 164974, August 5, 2015, Supreme Court First Division, Bersamin, J., writing for the Court. Petitioner Charlie Te was the target of a search warrant issued by the respondent Presiding Judge of the Regional Trial Court (RTC), Branch 10, Davao City, upon application by U. R. Bahinting, Special Investigator of the NBI Sarangani District Office (NBI‑SARDO). The NBI application was prompted by a complaint from Pryce Gases, Inc. alleging hoarding of liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) cylinders and violations of intellectual property provisions for collection and possession of Pryce Gases‑marked cylinders.On October 14, 2003, petitioner filed an Omnibus Motion to Quash Warrant and/or Suppress Evidence and to Order Return of Seized Items, contesting probable cause, the specification of the offense, the timing (night) of the search, application of the plain view doctrine, and alleged inclusion of other offenses. The RTC denied the motion in an order dated November 20, 2003, finding that the warrant was issued for a specified offense, that probable cause existed, that the seizure fell within the plain view doctrine, and noting the seizure actually occurred in daylight the following day. The RTC denied a motion for reconsideration on January 5, 2004.
Petitioner sought certiorari relief from the Court of Appeals (CA) to annul the RTC order. The CA dismissed the petition on March 25, 2004 for failure to implead the People of the Philippines as a respondent and for lack of proof of service on the Office of the Solicitor General (OSG). Petitioner filed a motion for reconsideration and submitted an affidavit of service showing copies were mailed to the OSG, but the CA denied reconsideration on July 21, 2004 because petitioner did not amend the petition to actually implead the People of the Philippines.
Petitioner then filed a petition for review on certiorari to the Supreme Court under Rule 45. The Supreme Court initially denied filing-extension...(Subscriber-Only)
Issues:
- Is the People of the Philippines an indispensable party whose omission is a fatal defect in a petition for certiorari attacking the denial of a motion to quash a search warrant?
- Did the Court of Appeals commit grave abuse of discretion in dismissing the petition for certiorari for failure to implead the...(Subscriber-Only)
Ruling:
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Ratio:
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Doctrine:
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