Question & AnswerQ&A (Act No. 1703)
Municipal prisoners include persons detained or sentenced for violation of municipal or city ordinances, those detained pending trial before justices of the peace or municipal courts, persons sentenced to payment of a fine with subsidiary imprisonment not exceeding nine months or sentenced to arresto menor or arresto menor and fine, persons sentenced to imprisonment not exceeding 30 days, and persons detained pending preliminary investigation by a justice of the peace or municipal court judge until remanded to the Court of First Instance.
All municipal prisoners shall be maintained by the city or municipality where the offense was committed, except as otherwise provided in the Act.
Provincial prisoners include persons detained pending preliminary investigation or trial before the Court of First Instance, those sentenced by a court of original jurisdiction to arresto mayor, presidio correctional or prision correctional not exceeding one year, fines not exceeding five hundred pesos or both penalties, and persons sentenced to imprisonment for more than 30 days but not exceeding one year.
Provincial prisoners are maintained by the province where the offense was committed, except as otherwise provided in the Act.
Insular prisoners are those who are neither municipal nor provincial prisoners, as well as persons sentenced for violations of immigration or Chinese exclusion laws, customs and navigation laws, or Act No. 1411 prohibiting exportation of silver coins, regardless of sentence.
Insular prisoners shall be maintained out of the appropriation for the Bureau of Prisons, except for those with less than one year left in provincial jails after deductions for good conduct.
No, the status of a prisoner shall not be changed pending an appeal. Changes upon appeal that affect status take effect from the date of judgment and are not retroactive.
The municipality where the offense was committed pays for transportation, guarding, and subsistence of prisoners moved from municipal to provincial jails, except for the expenses of Constabulary escorts.
With the approval of the Governor-General, provincial boards may direct confinement of municipal prisoners in provincial jails if municipal jails are inadequate, insecure, or lacking, with maintenance costs charged to the municipality.
They may be compelled to work on public works in prisons, jails, government buildings, grounds, roads, and other public projects, under regulations prescribed by the Director of Prisons and approved by the Secretary of Public Instruction. There are exceptions for those over 60 years old and conditions for female prisoners.
The Governor-General may designate and establish Insular penal institutions, direct transfers of Insular prisoners between institutions, and detail finally convicted prisoners to work, with terms fixed by the Secretary of Public Instruction.
The province where the offense was committed bears the expenses of transportation, guarding, subsistence during transportation of Insular prisoners from provincial jails to Insular penal institutions, and also the expenses of transportation of released prisoners back to their homes.
The Governor-General may order the transfer of any prisoners to or from Insular prisons or penal institutions to provincial or municipal jails as necessary, with transportation and maintenance expenses charged accordingly.
Minors under specified ages committed to Bilibid or provincial jails may be transferred by executive order to suitable institutions, considering religious affiliations, with the possibility of retransfers ordered by the Governor-General. Expenses are borne by the province or Bureau of Prisons depending on prisoner status.
The city of Manila is considered both a province and a municipality for purposes of this Act.