Article III Bill of Rights

Sections11 16

Article III Section11

Free access to the courts and quasi-judicial
bodies and adequate legal assistance shall not be
denied to any person by reason of poverty.

Rights under Article III Section

11
Right to free access to the courts
and quasi-judicial bodies.

Supreme Court.

Definition of quasi-judicial body.

A quasi-judicial body is an individual or
organization which has powers resembling those
of a court of law or judge and is able to remedy a
situation or impose legal penalties on a person
or organization.

 Such bodies usually have powers of adjudication

in such matters as:
breach of discipline
conduct rules
trust in the matters of money or otherwise

Example: Commission on Human Rights

Rights under Article III Section

11
Right to adequate legal assistance.

Public Attorneys Office

PAO Mission
The Public Attorneys Office exists to provide the
indigent litigants, the oppressed, marginalized and
underprivileged members of the society free access
to courts, judicial and quasi-judicial agencies, by
rendering legal services, counseling and assistance in
consonance with the Constitutional mandate that
free access to courts shall not be denied to
any person by reason of poverty in order to
ensure the rule of law, truth and social justice as
components of the countrys sustainable
development.

Article III Section 12

(1) Any person under investigation for the
commission of an offense shall have the right
to be informed of his right to remain silent and
to have competent and independent counsel
preferably of his own choice. If the person
cannot afford the services of counsel, he must
be provided with one.

Article III Section 12

(2) No torture, force, violence, threat,
intimidation, or any other means which vitiate
the free will shall be used against him. Secret
detention places, solitary, incommunicado, or
other similar forms of detention are
prohibited.

Rights of person under investigation.

1. to be informed of his right to remain silent;
2. to have competent and independent counsel
preferably of his own choice or to be provided
with one.
3. against the use of torture, force, violence,
threat, intimidation, or any other means which
vitiates the free will; and
4. against being held in secret, solitary,
incommunicado, or other similar forms of
detention.

Example.
A violation against Article III Section 12(2) has
been recorded on 18 August 2010, when
policemen were caught on cell phone video,
torturing an accused thief. Binayug, the alleged
Manila Police District officer who was in the
video, denied the crime though in his statement
during Senate hearing.

Article III Section 12

(3) Any confession or admission obtained in
violation of this or Section 17 hereof shall be
inadmissible in evidence against him.

Article III Section 12

(4) The law shall provide for penal and civil
sanctions for violations of this section as well
as compensation to and rehabilitation of
victims of torture of similar practices, and their
families.

Example.
The Manila Police District (MPD) and the
National Capital Region Police Office (NCRPO)
investigated the case of the torture incident on
08 August 2010.

Example.
Torture is now considered a heinous crime
under Republic Act No. 9745 or the Anti-Torture
Act of 2009. If found guilty of violating RA 9745,
perpetrators could face a 12 to 20-year prison
sentence. If the torture victim dies, the
perpetrators shall be sentenced to life
imprisonment.

Article III Section 13

All persons, except those charged with offenses
punishable by reclusion perpetua when evidence
of guilt is strong, shall, before conviction, be
bailable by sufficient sureties, or be released on
recognizance as may be provided by law. The
right to bail shall not be impaired even when the
privilege of the writ of habeas corpus is
suspended. Excessive bail shall not be required.

Meaning of bail.
Bail
is the security required by a court given for the
provisional or temporary release of a person who
is in the custody of the law conditioned upon his
appearance before any court as required under the
conditions specified.

Who may not invoke the right to bail.

1. It cannot be invoked where the applicant is not
yet in custody of the law
2. It is also not available to one charged with
capital offense or an offense punishable by
reclusion perpetua, life imprisonment, or
death if the evidence of his guilt is strong.

Meaning of capital offense.

A capital offense
is an offense which, under the law existing at the
time of its commission, and at the time of the
application to be admitted to bail, may be
punished with reclusion perpetua, life
imprisonment, or death.

Reclusion Perpetua
Reclusion perpetua - Spanish, from Latin:
reclusio perpetua, meaning "permanent
imprisonment.

Reclusion Perpetua under the Revised

Penal Code.
The Code (Revised Penal Code) does not
prescribe the penalty of life imprisonment for
any of the felonies therein defined, that penalty
being invariably imposed for serious offenses
penalized not by the Revised Penal Code but by
special law.

under the Revised Penal Code

Reclusion perpetua entails imprisonment for at
least thirty [30] years after which the convict
becomes eligible for pardon. It also carries with
it accessory penalties, namely: perpetual special
disqualification, etc. It is not the same as life
imprisonment which, for one thing, does not
carry with it any accessory penalty, and for
another, does not appear to have any definite
extent or duration.

Article III Section 14

(1) No person shall be held to answer for a
criminal offense without due process of law.

Right to due process of law in criminal

cases.
1. Due process in its procedural aspect. A
person cannot be held to answer for a criminal
offense without due process of law. It requires
that:
a. the accused must be
1. tried before a competent court (i.e., court having
jurisdiction);
2. given a fair and impartial trial; and
3. allowed to use legal means and opportunity to
defend himself; and

Right to due process of law in criminal

cases.
b. The judgment awarded against him must be
within the authority of a valid law.

2. Observance of fundamental fairness. As

applied to a criminal trial, denial of due
process, it has been said, is the failure to
observe that fundamental fairness essential to
the very concept of justice.

Article III Section 14

(2) In all criminal prosecutions, the accused shall
be presumed innocent until the contrary is
proved, and shall enjoy the right to be heard by
himself and counsel, to be informed of the
nature and cause of the accusation against him,
to have a speedy, impartial, and public trial, to
meet the witnesses face to face, and to have
compulsory process to secure the attendance of
witnesses and the production of evidence in his
behalf.

Article III Section 14(2)

However, after arraignment, trial may proceed
notwithstanding the absence of the accused
provided that he has been duly notified and his
failure to appear is unjustifiable.

Rights under Article III Section 14(2).

1. Right to presumption of innocence.
2. Right to be heard by himself and counsel.
3. Right to be informed of the nature and cause of
the accusation against him.
4. Right to have a speedy, impartial , and public
trial.
5. Right to confrontation of witnesses.
6. Right to compulsory production of witnesses
and evidence.

Article III Section 15

The privilege of the writ of habeas corpus shall
not be suspended except in cases of invasion or
rebellion when the public safety requires it.

Meaning of writ of habeas corpus.

The writ of habeas corpus is an order issued by a
court of competent jurisdiction, directed to the
person detaining another, commanding him to
produce the body of the prisoner at a designated
time and place, and to show sufficient cause for
holding in custody the individual so detained.

Purpose of the writ.

It has for its purpose to inquire into all manner
of involuntary restraint or detention as
distinguished from voluntary and to relieve a
person therefrom if such restraint is found
illegal. The writ is proper remedy in each and
every case of detention without legal cause or
authority. Its principal purpose then is to set the
individual at liberty.

Suspension of the privilege of the writ.

The privilege of the writ of habeas corpus (not
the writ itself) may be suspended by the
President (Art. VII, Sec. 18.) in case only of
invasion or rebellion, when public safety
requires it. Consequently, the person under
detention by the government may not obtain his
liberty by its use.

Suspension of the privilege of the writ.

The suspension of the privilege of the writ
enables the State to hold in preventive
imprisonment pending investigation and trial of
persons who plot against it or commit acts that
endanger its very existence. Thus, the
suspension, in effect, sanctions or allows arrests
and seizures without warrants issued by the
courts.

Article III Section 16

All persons shall have the right to a speedy
disposition of their cases before all judicial,
quasi-judicial, or administrative bodies.

Right under Article III Section 16.

Right to speedy disposition of cases.
1. Importance of right. The provision upholds
the time-honored tradition of speedy justice for
as stated in truism Justice delayed is justice
denied.
2. Invocation of right. The right to a speedy
disposition of cases can be invoked only after the
termination of the trial or hearing of a case.

Right under Article III Section 16

3. Time limit in disposition of cases. Under the
present Constitution, the Supreme Court, all
lower collegiate courts, and all other lower
courts are required to decide or resolve cases
within a certain period of time.
4. Cases contemplated. The provision
contemplates the disposition of cases involving
private interests not only before judicial bodies,
but also before quasi-judicial and administrative
bodies.

References.
1. De Leon, H. & De Leon, H. Jr. (2011). Textbook
on the Philippine constitution 2011. Manila:
Rex Book Store.
2. www.chr.gov.ph
3. www.enotes.com
4. www.abs-cbnnews.com
5. www.philstar.com
6. www.chanrobles.com