ILLEGAL SEARCH DOOMS ANOTHER ANTI-DRUG CASE

A DANAO City Regional Trial Court (RTC) has cleared a man charged with four
criminal cases for possession of more than 200 grams of shabu, marijuana
sticks and a gun.

RTC Branch 25 Judge Sylva G. Aguirre Paderanga acquitted William Ormoc
Jasmin after she found out that the evidence presented against the accused
was illegally taken from him.

"This court, therefore, believes and so holds that the search on the
accused was not incidental to a lawful arrest. So, the evidence found in
his possession and in the premises cannot be admitted as evidence against
him, being fruits of the poisonous tree," Paderanga said in her order.

Members of the Danao Special Operations Group (DSOG) arrested Jasmin in a
pension house on Sept. 11, 2001 after they found out that he was allegedly
selling drugs.

During his arrest, the DSOG seized 215 grams of shabu and drug
paraphernalia, 43 sticks of marijuana and a Colt .45 pistol.

Assisted by lawyer Salvador Solima, Jasmin used the defense of alibi and
said that evidence against him was fabricated and planted.

The DSOG members, after getting a tip from their informant that someone was
selling drugs inside a pension house, immediately conducted a test-buy.

Positive that Jasmin was indeed selling shabu, they then formed a team to
conduct a search in the area. When they were already in the vicinity, a
police officer, without asking permission from the pension house owner,
immediately went upstairs, sneaked through a jarred door and reportedly saw
that Jasmin and a lady companion were sniffing shabu.

For Privacy

But in her decision, Judge Paderanga said the prosecution failed to prove
that the search on Jasmin was legal.

She said the prosecution did not even present the person who conducted the
test-buy, which could have at least proved that the test-buy indeed yielded
a positive result.

Paderanga also reprimanded the DSOG for not getting a search warrant when
the DSOG office is just a few meters from the court.

The act of sneaking through an open door of the pension house by one DSOG
officer was a "demonstration of the lack of respect for the constitutional
right of privacy" of Jasmin and his lady companion.

While it is true that the drug problem needs a heightened campaign to curb
it, Judge Paderanga said, it should not be done at the expense of the
rights of individuals.