Balindong Vs CA

SUPREME COURT REPORTS ANNOTATED VOLUME 773 23/09/2019, 1)17 AM
G.R. No. 177600. October 19, 2015.*
MAYOR ANWAR BERUA BALINDONG, LT. COL. JALAN-

DONI COTA, MAYOR AMER ODEN BALINDONG, and
ALI BALINDONG, petitioners, vs. COURT OF APPEALS,
STATE PROSECUTOR LEAH ARMAMENTO, OFFICE OF
THE SOLICITOR GENERAL and ZENAIDA LIMBONA,
respondents.
G.R. No. 178684. October 19, 2015.*
ZENAIDA M. LIMBONA, petitioner, vs. HON. JUDGE

ALEXANDER S. BALUT OF THE REGIONAL TRIAL
* FIRST DIVISION.
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28 SUPREME COURT REPORTS ANNOTATED

Balindong vs. Court of Appeals
COURT OF QUEZON CITY, BRANCH 76, respondent.
Remedial Law; Criminal Procedure; Probable Cause; The act of

issuing the warrant of arrest upon filing of the information and
supporting papers implied that the judge has determined the
existence of probable cause for the offenses charged.·The language
and meaning of the Decision promulgated in G.R. No. 159962, that
the proper criminal charges against Balindong, et al. were two
counts of murder with attempted murder, two counts of
http://www.central.com.ph/sfsreader/session/0000016d59f529ee9cf3da10003600fb002c009e/p/AUD797/?username=Guest Page 1 of 29
frustrated murder, and one count of attempted murder, were

clear and forthright enough to require elaboration. Accordingly, the
Court, by thereby ordering the RTC „to implement its Resolution
dated 03 December 2003 relative to the issuance of warrants of
arrest against all the accused,‰ did not need to dwell specifically on
the judicial determination of probable cause independently of the
executive determination. We should remind that the trial judge, by
issuing the warrants of arrest, already found the existence of
probable cause against Balindong, et al. Indeed, the act of issuing
the warrant of arrest upon filing of the information and supporting
papers implied that the judge has determined the existence of
probable cause for the offenses charged. It is then superfluous for
the accused to seek the judicial determination of probable cause on
the pretext that the trial court should still act and proceed
independently of the executive determination of probable cause to
charge the proper offense.
Same; Special Civil Actions; Contempt of Court; Words and
Phrases; Contempt of court is a defiance of the authority, justice or
dignity of the court; such conduct as tends to bring the authority and
administration of the law into disrespect or to interfere with or
prejudice parties litigant or their witnesses during litigation.·
Contempt of court is defined in jurisprudence in this manner:
Contempt of court is defined as a disobedience to the Court by
acting in opposition to its authority, justice and dignity. It signifies
not only a willful disregard or disobedience of the courts orders, but
such conduct which tends to bring the authority of the court and the
administration of law into disrepute or in some manner to impede
the due administration of justice. Contempt of court is a defiance of
the authority, justice or dignity of the court; such conduct as tends
to bring the authority and administration of the law into disrespect
or to interfere with or prejudice parties litigant or their witnesses
during litigation. The contempt power of the courts has been dis-
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VOL. 773, OCTOBER 19, 2015 29

cussed in Sison v. Caoibes, Jr., 429 SCRA 258 (2004), to wit:

Thus, the power to declare a person in contempt of court and in
dealing with him accordingly is an inherent power lodged in courts
of justice, to be used as a means to protect and preserve the dignity
of the court, the solemnity of the proceedings therein, and the
administration of justice from callous misbehavior, offensive
personalities, and contumacious refusal to comply with court
orders. Indeed, the power of contempt is power assumed by a court
or judge to coerce cooperation and punish disobedience, disrespect
or interference with the courts orderly process by exacting summary
punishment. The contempt power was given to the courts in trust
for the public, by tradition and necessity, inasmuch as respect for
the courts, which are ordained to administer the laws which are
necessary to the good order of society, is as necessary as respect for
the laws themselves.
Same; Same; Same; The power of the courts to punish for
contempt is to be exercised cautiously, sparingly, and judiciously.·
Verily, the power of the courts to punish for contempt is to be
exercised cautiously, sparingly, and judiciously. Self-restraint in
wielding contempt powers should be the rule unless the act
complained of is clearly contumacious. An act, to be contumacious,
must manifest willfulness, bad faith, or deliberate intent to cause
injustice.
PETITION for review on certiorari of a decision of the

Court of Appeals.
The facts are stated in the opinion of the Court.
Napoleon Uy Galit & Associates Law Offices for Mayor
Anwar Berua Balindong, et al.
Jimenea & Associates Law Office for Zenaida Limbona.
BERSAMIN, J.:
The issuance by the trial court of the warrant of arrest

upon filing of the information and supporting papers
implies the determination of probable cause for the offense
charged. It is then superfluous for the accused to seek the
judicial determination of probable cause on the pretext that
the trial court
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should still act and proceed independently of the executive

determination of probable cause to charge the proper
offense.
The Case
Before us are the consolidated cases of G.R. No. 177600

and G.R. No. 178684. G.R. No. 177600 involves the appeal
by petition for review on certiorari of Mayor Anwar Berua
Balindong, Lt. Col. Jalandoni Cota, Mayor Amer Oden
Balindong, and Ali Balindong (Balindong, et al.) to assail
the Decision promulgated on April 24, 2007 by the Court of
Appeals (CA) in C.A.-G.R. S.P. No. 97121.1 G.R. No. 178684
relates to the Petition (To Show Cause Why Respondent
Should Not Be Held in Contempt of Court)2 brought by
Zenaida M. Limbona (Limbona), the private complainant in
the criminal cases instituted against Balindong, et al.,
charging Presiding Judge Alexander S. Balut of the
Regional Trial Court (RTC), Branch 76, in Quezon City
with contempt of court for issuing the order dated July 16,
2007 suspending the proceedings in the criminal cases
involving Balindong, et al. out of judicial courtesy.3
Antecedents
The CAÊs decision being assailed in C.A.-G.R. S.P. No.

97121 rendered the following factual antecedents, to wit:
The long-drawn controversy now raised in the instant petition

was instigated by a shooting incident that took place in Poblacion,
Malabang, Lanao del Sur on May 11, 1998 that resulted in the
death of Dante Limbona and Ante Maguindanao, and the serious
wounding of Azis Panda and Kiri Hadji Salik. In the course of the
pre-
_______________
1 Rollo (G.R. No. 177600), pp. 58-72, penned by Associate Justice

Rosmari D. Carandang with the concurrence of Associate Justices
Rodrigo V. Cosico (retired) and Mariflor P. Punzalan-Castillo.
2 Rollo (G.R. No. 178684), pp. 3-17.
3 Id., at p. 112.
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VOL. 773, OCTOBER 19, 2015 31

liminary investigation the investigating prosecutor found probable

cause to charge private respondents Lt. Col. Jalandoni D. Cota,
Anwar Berua Balindong, PO1 Kennedy Balindong, Amer
Oden Balindong and Ali Sarip Balindong with Double Murder
with Multiple Frustrated Murder. The Information was thereupon
filed before the Regional Trial Court of Malabang, Lanao del Sur,
Branch 12. However, after reinvestigation ordered by the trial
court, the Office of the Provincial Prosecutor downgraded the
charges against private respondents Lt. Col. Jalandoni D. Cota,
Anwar Berua Balindong and Kennedy Balindong and dropped
the charges against Amer Oden Balindong and Ali Balindong.
Private complainant Zenaida Limbona, the widow of the victim
Dante Limbona, filed a petition for review questioning the
Provincial ProsecutorÊs 28 August 1998 Resolution before the
Department of Justice (DOJ). In a 4 August 1999 Resolution, then
Secretary Serafin Cuevas modified the assailed resolution and
directed the Provincial Prosecutor to file instead „two (2)
informations for frustrated murder with attempted murder, two (2)
informations for frustrated murder and an information for
attempted murder‰ against private respondents. Subsequently, in a
1 December 1999 Resolution, Secretary Cuevas denied private
respondentsÊ Motion for Reconsideration in this wise:
„The matters raised in the instant motion for
reconsideration have been taken into consideration in
arriving at our resolution, hence, we find no cogent reason to
reconsider the same.
In view, however, of the Supplemental Manifestation filed
by Prosecutor Ringcar B. Pinote on October 19, 1999, the
dispositive portion of our resolution dated August 4, 1999 is

hereby modified to read as follows:
x x x ÂWHEREFORE, your resolution is hereby modified.
You are directed to file two (2) informations for murder with
attempted murder, two (2) informations for frustrated
32

murder and an information for attempted murder against

respondents Datu Anwar Berua Balindong, Lt. Col. Jalandoni
Cota, PO1 Kennedy Macaborod Balindong, Datu Amer-Oden
Sarip Balindong and Datu Ali Sarip Balindong. Report your
compliance within ten (10) days from receipt hereof.Ê x x x‰
The corresponding Amended Informations were accordingly filed
before the Regional Trial Court of Maguindanao, Cotabato City and
docketed as Criminal Case Nos. 2503, 2573, 2574, 2575 and 2576.
Private respondents, in the meantime, filed a second Motion for
Reconsideration, which the succeeding DOJ Secretary Artemio G.
Tuquero in a 16 March 2000 Resolution denied „with finality and
with warning that no further pleadings will be entertained.‰
Undeterred by the tenor of the denial of their second motion for
reconsideration, they filed a Third Motion for Reconsideration that
was eventually granted by the new DOJ Secretary Hernando B.
Perez in a 12 March 2001 Resolution. Private complainants sought
reconsideration thereof but the same was subsequently denied in a
24 July 2001 Resolution, prompting them to bring the matter before
the Court of Appeals in a petition for certiorari docketed as C.A.-
G.R. S.P. No. 66858. In a 22 May 2003 Decision, the Court of
Appeals set aside the assailed issuances of DOJ Secretary Perez
and reinstated the 4 August 1999, 1 December 1999 and 16 March
2000 DOJ Resolutions, in due time denying private respondentsÊ
Motion for Reconsideration in a 23 September 2003 Resolution.
Later, Criminal Case Nos. 2503 and 2573 were re-raffled to the
Regional Trial Court (RTC) of Quezon City, Branch 219 and re-
docketed as Criminal Case Nos. Q-01-998992-93 [sic], Q-01-100542-
43 and Q-01-100594. Then, pursuant to the 22 May 2003 Decision of
the Court of Appeals, the RTC-Branch 219 issued a resolution

finding probable cause to charge private respondents for Murder
with Attempted Murder in Criminal Case No. Q-01-998992-93 [sic],
Frustrated Murder in Criminal Case No.
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VOL. 773, OCTOBER 19, 2015 33

Q-01-100542-43, and Attempted Murder in Criminal Case No. Q-01-

100594. The warrants of arrest were accordingly issued against
private respondents, who, undaunted, went up to the Supreme
Court to question the Decision of the Court of Appeals by way of a
petition for review on certiorari, docketed as G.R. No. 159962. Soon
after, the Supreme Court promulgated therein its 16 December 2004
Decision, the dispositive portion of which states:
„WHEREFORE, the petition is DENIED and the Decision
of the Court of Appeals dated 22 May 2003 which annulled
the DOJ Resolution dated March 12, 2001 and reinstated its
Resolutions issued on 04 August 1999, 01 December 1999 and
16 March 2000 is AFFIRMED. The Temporary Restraining
Order issued on 18 February 2004 by this Court is hereby
LIFTED, and the Regional Trial Court of Quezon City,
Branch 219, is ORDERED to implement its Resolution dated
03 December 2003 relative to the issuance of warrants of
arrest against all the accused. The said court is directed to
submit a report thereon within ten (10) days from receipt
hereof.‰
Private respondents filed a Motion for Reconsideration but the
same was denied with finality as the Supreme Court declared in its
6 June 2005 Resolution that „there is no longer any obstacle to the
implementation of the existing warrants of arrest.‰ Despite the
categorical pronouncement, however, private respondents
adamantly filed another motion purportedly for clarification of the
16 December 2004 Decision but which was in fact an attempt to
have the High Court order a re-determination by the trial court of
the appropriate crime with which to charge private respondents. In
the 14 August 2005 Resolution, the Supreme Court ruled thus:
„The Court Resolves to (a) EXPUNGE from the records of

this case petitionersÊ urgent motion for clarification dated
June 25, 2005, x x x; and (b) ADMONISH petitioners and
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their counsel to pay heed to the directives of this Court and

against misrepresenting the import of its rulings and to
desist from any further unauthorized pleadings UNDER
PAIN OF CONTEMPT.‰
The 16 December 2006 Decision of the Supreme Court became
final and executory on July 5, 2005. Subsequently, due to the
inhibition of the presiding judge of the RTC-Branch 219 the
criminal cases were raffled to RTC-Branch 100, whose presiding
judge was expressly ordered by the Supreme Court to enforce the
warrants of arrest against private respondents with utmost
dispatch in a 12 December 2005 Resolution. After issuing the Order
relative to the enforcement of the warrants of arrest against private
respondents, however, the presiding judge of the RTC-Branch 100
inhibited herself as well from hearing the criminal cases and the
same were re-raffled anew to the RTC-Branch 83, presided by
respondent Judge Ralph S. Lee.
Private respondents then filed before RTC-Branch 83 a Motion to
Re-Determine the Existence or Non-Existence of Probable Cause
Which May Even Warrant Dismissal · Even of the Appropriate
Charges of Homicide, Frustrated and Attempted Homicides. Private
complainants, on the other hand, moved for respondent Judge LeeÊs
inhibition when the latter failed to act upon a motion for the
issuance of Alias Warrants of Arrest. However, prior to voluntarily
inhibiting himself from the subject criminal cases, respondent
Judge Lee issued the assailed 12 May 2006 Order granting private
respondentsÊ motion for redetermination of probable cause and
consequently ordering the downgrading of the crimes charged. The
cases were then re-raffled to RTC-Branch 77, presided by
respondent Judge Vivencio S. Baclig, who then issued the second
assailed 18 October 2006 Order denying a Motion for
Reconsideration of the 12 May 2006 Order issued by respondent

Judge Lee and setting the arraignment on November 3, 2006.
Private complainants filed a motion for the voluntary inhibition of
respondent Judge Baclig, who later denied said motion and reset
the
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arraignment on December 11, 2006 in the 22 November 2006

Order.4
Aggrieved by the orders issued on May 12, 2006 and

October 18, 2006, respectively, by Judge Ralph S. Lee and
Judge Vivencio S. Baclig, the State, through the Office of
Solicitor General, commenced a special civil action for
certiorari in the CA (C.A.-G.R. S.P. No. 97121), alleging
that:
RESPONDENT JUDGES COMMITTED GRAVE ABUSE OF

DISCRETION AMOUNTING TO LACK OR EXCESS OF
JURISDICTION IN ISSUING THE ASSAILED MAY 12,
2006 AND OCTOBER 18, 2006 ORDERS.5
On November 20, 2006, the Court promulgated its

Decision in G.R. No. 173290 adjudging Judge Lee and
Balindong, et al. guilty of indirect contempt,6 viz.:
In the present case, private respondents are guilty of
indirect contempt for filing the following:
(1) Urgent Motion for Clarification of the dispositive
portion of the December 16, 2004 Decision in G.R. No.
159962;
(2) Motion for Determination of Probable Cause and/or
Motion to Dismiss the Case and to Quash Warrant of
Arrest (with prayer for suspension of the enforcement of
warrant of arrest pending hearing) filed on September 1,
2005 before Branch 100 of the RTC of Quezon City presided

by Judge Christine Jacob;
_______________
4 Rollo (G.R. No. 177600) pp. 59-65.

5 Id., at p. 65.
6 Rollo (G.R. No. 178684), pp. 68-78; penned by Associate Justice
Consuelo Ynares-Santiago, with Associate Justices Ma. Alicia Austria-
Martines, Romeo J. Callejo, Sr., and Minita V. Chico-Nazario, concurring.
Chief Justice Artemio V. Panganiban had no part in the case as he is a
former partner of a partyÊs counsel.
36

(3) Motion for Reconsideration of Judge JacobÊs January 4, 2006

Order denying their motion dated September 1, 2005 filed on
January 24, 2006;
(4) Motion to Re-Determine the Existence or Non-Existence of
Probable Cause Which May Even Warrant Dismissal · Even of the
Appropriate Charges of Homicide, Frustrated and Attempted
Homicide filed before Branch 83 on February 21, 2006.
The December 16, 2004 Decision of the Court in G.R. No. 159962
clearly sustained the filing of two Informations for Murder with
Attempted Murder, two Informations for Frustrated Murder and an
Information for Attempted Murder against private respondents.
The Court even directed the implementation of the arrest warrants
against them. This, notwithstanding, private respondents filed a
motion for determination of probable cause and/or dismissal of the
case against them. Worse, this was done after being admonished by
the Court to pay heed to its directives under pain of contempt.
With the finality of this CourtÊs Decision, all issues relative to
the determination of the proper offenses with which to charge
private respondents had been laid to rest. In continuing to file
pleadings and motions purportedly seeking for the clarification of
the proper charges against them, respondents merely rehashed
their tired arguments and unavailing assertions. They did not only
succeed in delaying the conduct of the trial of the aforesaid cases
but also willfully and deliberately flouted this CourtÊs directives
with their stubborn refusal to abide by our pronouncement and
their incessant nit-picking of issues already resolved with finality.
In granting respondentsÊ motions for reconsideration and
redetermination of probable cause, and consequently downgrading
the charges against respondents in his Order dated May 12, 2006,
Judge Lee contravened this CourtÊs directive in G.R. No. 159962
and in the subject Resolutions. He impudently substituted his own
judgment for that of this Court. Had he thoroughly reviewed the
records of the case, it would have been impos-
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sible for him to misread the import of said Decisions and

Resolutions.7
Thereafter, Judge Lee inhibited from the criminal cases,

which were reassigned to Branch 91 the RTC, presided by
Judge Lita Tolentino-Genilo, who, on May 24, 2007, issued
an order: (a) reinstating the charges against Balindong, et
al. for two counts of murder with attempted murder, two
counts of frustrated murder, and one count of attempted
murder to conform with the decision promulgated in G.R.
No. 159962; (b) issuing alias warrants of arrest against
them; and (c) inhibiting herself from further hearing the
cases.8 Subsequently, the criminal cases were re-raffled to
Branch 76, whose Presiding Judge was respondent Judge
Alexander S. Balut.
Aggrieved by the dispositions of Judge Tolentino-Genilo,
Balindong, et al. filed their Motion for Reconsideration
and/or Recall Suspend Order of Arrest.9 As the new trial
judge, however, Judge Balut opted to defer action to await
the CourtÊs ruling in G.R. No. 177600.10 He further
suspended the enforcement of the alias warrants issued for

the arrest of Balindong, et al.11 Hence, Limbona
commenced G.R. No. 178684.
On April 24, 2007, the CA promulgated its ruling in
C.A.-G.R. S.P. No. 97121,12 disposing:
WHEREFORE, premises considered, the petition is hereby

GRANTED. The 12 May 2006 Order of the Regional Trial Court of
Quezon City, Branch 83, as well as, the 18 October 2006 Order of
the Regional Trial Court of Quezon City, Branch 77 are
REVERSED and SET ASIDE.
_______________
7 Id., at pp. 75-76.

8 Id., at pp. 99-100.
9 Id., at pp. 101-107.
10 Id., at p. 112.
11 Id.
12 Rollo (G.R. No. 177600), pp. 58-72.
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SO ORDERED.13
The CA declared the assailed orders of Judge Lee and

Judge Baclig to be in clear defiance of the CourtÊs decision
in G.R. No. 159962.14 It pronounced that Judge Lee erred
in opining that the Court had only sustained in G.R. No.
159962 the executive determination of probable cause by
the DOJ, and had not touched on what appropriate crimes
should have been charged against Balindong, et al.;15 and
that Judge Baclig similarly erred in holding that the Court
„did not prohibit the trial judge from determining the
appropriate crime to be filed against the accused [once] the
cases were brought to his sala.‰16 It pointed out that:
There are no two ways to construe the 16 December 2004

Decision of the Supreme Court relative the appropriate
charges to be filed against private respondents. In upholding
the Court of AppealsÊ ruling that the DOJ should not have
entertained a third motion for reconsideration, the Supreme
Court did not merely touch upon a procedural infirmity but
ruled further on private respondentsÊ material objections to
the propriety of the murder charge against them. x x x
xxxx
To reiterate the rule, determination of qualifying
circumstances is a matter of evidence. Thus, as pointed out by
petitioner, by arbitrarily downgrading the original charge
from murder, frustrated murder and attempted murder to
homicide, frustrated homicide and attempted homicide,
respondent Judge Lee effectively denied the prosecution the
opportunity to prove the attendance of qualifying
circumstances in a full-blown trial.17
_______________
13 Id., at p. 71.
14 Id., at p. 66.
15 Id., at p. 67.
16 Id., at p. 66.
17 Id., at pp. 66-67.
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VOL. 773, OCTOBER 19, 2015 39

The CA took note of the ruling of the Court in G.R. No.

173290, which said in part:
Finally, whatever other grounds for opposition raised by private

respondents in their Comment to the Petition and Rejoinder to
PetitionerÊs Reply, the resolution of this case has been simplified by
the promulgation of the Supreme Court 20 November 2006 Decision
in the petition for indirect contempt filed against private
respondents. In granting private respondentsÊ motion for

reconsideration and redetermination of probable cause, and
consequently downgrading the charges, the Supreme Court found
respondent Judge Lee guilty of indirect contempt for having clearly
contravened the CourtÊs directive in G.R. No. 159962 and
impudently substituting his own judgment for that of the Court. It
further found private respondentsÊ persistent attempts to raise
issues long settled by a final and executory judgment a
contumacious defiance of the CourtÊs authority. x x x
xxxx
Accordingly, private respondents have been penalized for their
contumacious acts and the issue concerning the proper crimes with
which they should be charged has been laid to rest.18
Balindong, et al. have appealed the CAÊs decision in

C.A.-G.R. S.P. No. 97121 (G.R. No. 177600).
Issues
In G.R. No. 177600, Balindong, et al. submit the

following issue:
WHETHER OR NOT AFTER THE EXHAUSTION OF
PRELIMINARY INVESTIGATION WHICH REACHED
THE DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE BY WAY OF
PETITION FOR REVIEW, TO THE COURT OF AP-
_______________
18 Id., at pp. 69-71.
40

PEALS AND ULTIMATELY TO THIS HONORABLE COURT (IN

G.R. NO. 159962), AND AFTER THE PROSECUTIONÊS STAND
SUSTAINING THE ORIGINAL INFORMATIONS FOR MURDER,
FRUSTRATED AND ATTEMPTED HAD BEEN MADE FINAL

AND EXECUTORY, THE RTC (A COURT OF GENERAL
JURISDICTION) AND/OR YOUR PETITIONERS ACCUSED, ARE
PRECLUDED/PROHIBITED FROM INVOKING SECTION 14,
RULE 110 OR SECTION 19, RULE 119 OF THE 2000 REVISED
RULES ON CRIMINAL PROCEDURE ESPECIALLY SINCE IT
WAS MADE FOR THE FIRST TIME AFTER YOUR
PETITIONERSÊ EXECUTIVE REMEDY FROM THE
PRELIMINARY INVESTIGATION TO A PETITION FOR REVIEW
(BEFORE THE DOJ), THE APPELLATE COURT AND THIS
HONORABLE COURT WAS EXHAUSTED AND NOTHING
MORE.19
In G.R. No. 178684, Limbona raises as the sole ground

for her petition to cite in contempt of court Judge Balut and
Balindong, et al. that:
Petitioner respectfully submits the foregoing acts of Respondent

in willfully disobeying the decision and resolutions issued by the
Hon. Supreme Court in G.R. No. 159962 and G.R.173290 (sic),
which tend to impede upon or obstruct the administration of justice,
constitutes an indirect contempt which ought to be punished.20
Rulings of the Court
G.R. No. 177600
The petition for review on certiorari in G.R. No. 177600

is denied for being bereft of merit.
_______________
19 Id., at pp. 14-15.

20 Rollo (G.R. No. 178684), pp. 10-11.
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VOL. 773, OCTOBER 19, 2015 41
Despite conceding that the Decision promulgated in G.R.

No. 159962 had long become final and executory,21
Balindong, et al. insist that they were not precluded from
still seeking from the RTC as the trial court the judicial
determination of probable cause against them because all
that the Court had upheld in G.R. No. 159962 was only the
executive determination of probable cause. They argue that
the Court did not thereby prevent their resort to available
judicial remedies, like filing the proper motions for the
judicial determination of probable cause in the trial court,22
anchoring their argument on Section 14, Rule 110, in
relation to Section 19, Rule 119, both of the Rules of Court.
The insistence of Balindong, et al. is legally
unwarranted.
To recall, G.R. No. 159962 was an appeal by Balindong,
et al. to review the judgment the CA had promulgated on
May 22, 2003: (a) granting the petition for certiorari of
Limbona; (b) setting aside DOJ Resolution issued on March
12, 2001 by then Secretary of Justice Hernando Perez
favorably acting on the third motion for reconsideration of
Balindong, et al. relative to the proper offenses to be
charged against them despite the denial with finality of
their first and second motions for reconsideration; and (c)
reinstating the DOJ Resolutions dated August 4, 1999,
December 1, 1999 and March 16, 2000 issued by the
predecessors of Secretary Perez.23 It is noted
_______________
21 Balindong v. Court of Appeals, December 16, 2004, 447 SCRA 200.

22 Rollo (G.R. No. 177600), pp. 15-18.
23 The first motion for reconsideration, which was filed by Balindong,
et al. on September 1, 1999 to contest the ruling on their petition for
review issued on August 4, 1999 whereby then Secretary of Justice
Serafin Cuevas directed the filing against them of two informations for
murder with attempted murder, two informations for frustrated murder,
and an information for attempted murder, was denied on December 1,
1999. Balindong, et al. then filed the second motion for reconsideration
on January 1, 2000, but then Acting Secretary of Justice Artemio
Tuquero denied it on March 16,
42

that in his assailed Resolution of March 12, 2001, Secretary

of Justice Perez had dropped Amer Oden Balindong and Ali
S. Balindong from the informations, and had directed the
Office of the Provincial Prosecutor of Lanao del Sur „to
cause the filing of the amended information for double
homicide with multiple frustrated homicide against Mayor
Anwar Berua Balindong, Lt. Col. Jalandoni Cota and PO1
Kennedy Balindong.‰24
In granting the petition for certiorari of Limbona, the CA
declared that Secretary of Justice Perez had committed
grave abuse of discretion amounting to lack or excess of
jurisdiction, firstly, by totally disregarding the clear
provision of Section 13 of DOJ Circular No. 70 (governing
appeals) prohibiting second or further motions for
reconsideration; and secondly, by acting on and granting
the third motion for reconsideration despite the grounds
relied upon by Balindong, et al. being previously raised in
the first and second motions for reconsideration and being
already fully passed upon by his predecessors in office in
the guise of serving the interest of justice and as an
exception to Section 13 of DOJ Circular No. 70.
The Court disposed in G.R. No. 159962 as follows:
WHEREFORE, the petition is DENIED and the Decision of the

Court of Appeals dated 22 May 2003 which annulled the DOJ
Resolution dated 12 March 2001 and reinstated its Resolutions
issued on 04 August 1999, 01 December 1999 and 16 March 2000 is
AFFIRMED. The Temporary Restraining Order issued on 18
February 2004 by this Court is hereby LIFTED, and the Regional
Trial Court of Quezon City, Branch 219, is ORDERED to implement
its Resolution dated 03 December 2003 relative to the issuance of
warrants of arrest against all the
_______________
2000 with a warning that no further pleadings would be entertained.

Nonetheless, Balindong, et al., still undeterred by the warning of Acting
Secretary Tuquero, filed the third motion for reconsideration on October
10, 2000.
24 Supra note 21 at p. 205.
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accused. The said Court is directed to submit a report thereon

within ten (10) days from receipt hereof.
Let a copy of this Decision be furnished the Department of
Justice for its information and appropriate action.
SO ORDERED.25
The language and meaning of the Decision promulgated

in G.R. No. 159962, that the proper criminal charges
against Balindong, et al. were two counts of murder
with attempted murder, two counts of frustrated
murder, and one count of attempted murder, were
clear and forthright enough to require elaboration.
Accordingly, the Court, by thereby ordering the RTC „to
implement its Resolution dated 03 December 2003 relative
to the issuance of warrants of arrest against all the
accused,‰ did not need to dwell specifically on the judicial
determination of probable cause independently of the
executive determination. We should remind that the trial
judge, by issuing the warrants of arrest, already found the
existence of probable cause against Balindong, et al.
Indeed, the act of issuing the warrant of arrest upon filing
of the information and supporting papers implied that the
judge has determined the existence of probable cause for
the offenses charged. It is then superfluous for the accused
to seek the judicial determination of probable cause on the
pretext that the trial court should still act and proceed
independently of the executive determination of probable
cause to charge the proper offense. Rule 112 of the Rules of

Court relevantly provides:
Sec. 6. When warrant of arrest may issue.· (a) By the

Regional Trial Court.·Within ten (10) days from the filing of the
complaint or information, the judge shall personally evaluate the
resolution of the prosecutor and its supporting evidence. He may
immediately dismiss the
_______________
25 Id., at p. 213.
44

case if the evidence on record clearly fails to establish probable

cause. If he finds probable cause, he shall issue a warrant of
arrest, or a commitment order if the accused has already been
arrested pursuant to a warrant issued by the judge who conducted
the preliminary investigation when the complaint or information
was filed pursuant to Section 7 of this Rule. In case of doubt on the
existence of probable cause, the judge may order the prosecutor to
present additional evidence within five (5) days from notice and the
issue must be resolved by the court within thirty (30) days from the
filing of the complaint or information. (bold emphasis supplied)
xxxx
Moreover, Balindong, et al. could not reasonably support

their position that they could still have the trial court
determine the existence of probable cause in their criminal
cases independently of the executive determination of
probable cause by the DOJ by relying on Section 14, Rule
110, in relation to Section 19, Rule 119, both of the Rules of
Court.
Section 14 of Rule 110 states:
Section 14. Amendment or substitution.·A complaint or

information may be amended, in form or in substance, without
leave of court, at any time before the accused enters his plea. After
the plea and during the trial, a formal amendment may only be
made with leave of court and when it can be done without causing
prejudice to the rights of the accused.
However, any amendment before plea, which downgrades the
nature of the offense charged in or excludes any accused from the
complaint or information, can be made only upon motion by the
prosecutor, with notice to the offended party and with leave of court.
The court shall state its reasons in resolving the motion and copies
of its order shall be furnished all parties, especially the offended
party. (n)
If it appears at any time before judgment that a mistake has
been made in charging the proper of-
45
VOL. 773, OCTOBER 19, 2015 45

fense, the court shall dismiss the original complaint or information

upon the filing of a new one charging the proper offense in
accordance with Section 19, Rule 119, provided the accused would
not be placed in double jeopardy. The court may require the
witnesses to give bail for their appearance at the trial. (14a) (bold
emphasis supplied)
Ostensibly, Section 14, supra, applies only to a situation

in which there has been a mistake on the part of public
prosecutor in charging the proper offense.
It becomes logical to ask: Did the public prosecutor make
a mistake in charging the proper offenses against
Balindong, et al.?
The answer is no.
There was no mistake in charging the proper offenses.
Balindong, et al. fully exhausted the procedure to
determine the proper offenses to be charged against them
by going all the way up to the Secretary of Justice. Their

quest was ultimately settled with finality by the Secretary
of Justice denying their second motion for reconsideration
and declaring that such offenses were two counts of murder
with attempted murder, two counts of frustrated murder,
and one count of attempted murder. They thereafter
attempted to undo such final determination by filing a
third motion for reconsideration in the DOJ, and they
initially succeeded because Secretary Perez directed the
Office of the Provincial Prosecutor of Lanao del Sur „to
cause the filing of the amended information for double
homicide with multiple frustrated homicide against Mayor
Anwar Berua Balindong, Lt. Col. Jalandoni Cota and PO1
Kennedy Balindong,‰ and dropped Amer Oden Balindong
and Ali S. Balindong from the informations. But their
success was overturned by the CA, whose nullification of
Secretary PerezÊs favorable action on their third motion for
reconsideration was affirmed in G.R. No. 159962. Thus,
this Court even issued its judicial imprimatur on the
probable cause for two counts of murder with attempted
murder, two counts of frus-
46

trated murder, and one count of attempted murder. For

Balindong, et al. to rely on Section 14, supra, as basis for
the RTC to still reach a determination of probable cause
different from those sanctioned in G.R. No. 159962 would
be untenable.
G.R. No. 178684
We next deal with the contempt charge of Limbona

against Judge Balut who, by his order of July 16, 2007,
deferred action on the Motion for Reconsideration and/or
Recall Suspend Order of Arrest of Balindong, et al., and
suspended the enforcement of the alias warrants of
arrest.26
Limbona claims that Judge BalutÊs actions constituted a
disobedience to the decisions of the Court in G.R. No.
159962 and G.R. No. 173290 because the suspension of the
enforcement of the alias warrants of arrest „has a
predilection to put the dignity of the [Court] in disrepute,
obstruct the administration of justice, or interfere with the
disposition or (sic) the courtÊs business in the performance
of its function in an orderly manner.‰27 She also points out
that the „order to suspend the enforcement of the said
warrants has the same effect of a temporary restraining
order,‰28 which, in effect, „preempted the [CourtÊs]
resolution of the prayer for the issuance of the temporary
restraining order/injunction.‰29
Let us also look at Judge BalutÊs order of July 16, 2007,
in which he stated as follows:
_______________
26 All the criminal cases against Balindong, et al. (specifically,

Criminal Case No. Q-01-99892, Criminal Case No. Q-01-99893, Criminal
Case No. Q-01-100542, Criminal Case No. Q-01-100543 and Criminal
Case No. Q-01-100594) were re-raffled to Branch 76 of the RTC in
Quezon City on June 1, 2007. The Presiding Judge at the time was Judge
Balut.
27 Rollo (G.R. No. 178684), p. 14.
28 Id.
29 Id.
47
VOL. 773, OCTOBER 19, 2015 47

Without necessarily addressing the merit of the motion, that is,

whether or not the alias warrants of arrest issued against the
accused should be recalled or set aside, and to avert any conflicting
determinations on the matter at hand, the Court deems it but
prudent to defer any action hereto considering that the accusedÊs
petition for review in G.R. No. 177600 assailing the Court of

AppealsÊ judgment in C.A.-G.R. S.P. No. 97121, which precipitated
the issuance of the order of arrest sought to be reconsidered/recalled
by herein accused, is still pending before the Honorable Supreme
Court for final determination.
In the meantime, while awaiting resolution of the said petition
for review in G.R. No. 177600, the enforcement of the alias
warrants of arrest, dated May 25, 2007, issued against the accused
is hereby suspended.30
Judge Balut has justified his actions by invoking judicial

courtesy and asserting his judicial discretion on the
matters in question, to wit:
As a backgrounder, five (5) consolidated criminal cases were

filed charging the accused Mayor Anwar Berua Balindong, et al.
with murder with attempted murder, frustrated murder and
attempted murder. Thereafter, a legal battle ensued concerned
mainly on what is the appropriate crime with which to charge the
accused. After several years of legal haggling, flip-flopping of
charges and the inhibition of five (5) trial judges, these cases finally
landed in the undersignedÊs sala with a pending incident: the
accusedÊs MOTION FOR RECONSIDERATION AND/OR RECALL
SUSPEND ORDER OF ARREST. Conscientious of his duty to
dispose of pending incidents with dispatch, the undersigned, fully
aware that any resolution of the said incident would spark
controversy, which would necessarily entail another series of legal
maneuverings resulting in the further delay of the disposition of
these cases, re-
_______________
30 Id., at p. 112.
48

solved to withhold action thereon and deemed it best to observe

judicial courtesy and await this Honorable CourtÊs determination of
the accusedÊs petition for review in G.R. No. 177600.
No less than the imperative of judicial courtesy impelled the
undersigned Presiding Judge to issue the order dated July 16, 2007.
A PETITION FOR REVIEW assailing the Court of AppealsÊ
Decision reversing and setting aside the May 12, 2006 Order of the
Regional Trial Court of Quezon City (Branch 83), as well as the
October 18, 2006 Order of the Regional Trial Court of Quezon City
(Branch 77) is pending before this Honorable Court. It is to be
recalled that in the May 12, 2006 Order, Judge Ralph S. Lee
downgraded the offenses charged in the informations from Murder
with Attempted Murder, Frustrated Murder and Attempted
Murder, to Double Homicide with Attempted Homicide, Multiple
Frustrated Homicide and Attempted Homicide, respectively. In the
October 18, 2006 Order, Judge Vivencio S. Baclig denied the
prosecutionÊs MOTION FOR RECONSIDERATION thereof. In
ordering the suspension of the enforcement of the alias warrants of
arrest dated May 25, 2007, the undersigned, not unmindful of the
Decision dated December 16, 2004 in G.R. No. 159962, the two
Resolutions dated June 6, 2005 and December 12, 2005, and the
Decision dated November 20, 2006 in G.R. No. 173290, merely
exercised his judicial discretion. He most respectfully submits that
the issuance of the Order downgrading the offenses is a
supervening fact which now divides the procedural antecedents of
the case, i.e., „prior to the order dated May 12, 2006‰ and „after said
order.‰ Prior to the order, this Honorable Court in ordering the
Regional Trial Court of Quezon City (Branch 219) to implement its
Resolution dated December 3, 2003 relative to the issuance of
warrants of arrest against all the accused, resolved that there is no
longer any obstacle to the implementation of the existing warrants
of arrest, and ordered Judge Marie Christine A. Jacob (Presiding
Judge of the Regional Trial Court of Quezon City, Branch 100) to
enforce the warrants of arrest against the petitioners on December
3, 2004 with utmost dispatch. In this stage,
49
VOL. 773, OCTOBER 19, 2015 49
there could certainly be no question or issue as to the

enforcement of the warrants of arrest. The Court indeed
spoke with finality. However, „after the Order,‰ where the
undersigned is, another issue evolved, which issue is still
pending final determination by the Honorable Court. The
foundation for this Honorable CourtÊs issuances, „before the
order‰ could not be said to be the same judicial foundation
now, „after the order,‰ as to hold the undersigned for
contempt in suspending the enforcement of the warrants of
arrest. The legal milieu has changed. x x x 31
It is clear that Judge Balut did not thereby disobey the
decisions of the Court in G.R. No. 159962 and G.R. No.
173290. To start with, there was no indication in his Order
that bad faith had moved him to suspend the
implementation of the warrants of arrest against
Balindong, et al., or that he had thereby acted with a
willful and deliberate intent to disobey or to ignore the
CourtÊs bidding, or to cause injustice to any of the parties.
In the absence of the clear showing of bad faith on his part,
his being prudent could only be an error of judgment, for
which he could not be held to account. Secondly, the history
of the criminal cases, from the transfer of venue at the
behest of Secretary Tuquero from Cagayan de Oro to
Quezon City; to the successive inhibitions of several RTC
Judges; to the succession of petitions for certiorari bearing
on the handling of the criminal cases brought to the higher
courts, including this Court,32 must have probably
persuaded Judge Balut to tread the path of prudence and
caution. Indeed, he expressed in his Order of July 16, 2007
the desire „to avert any conflicting determinations‰
pending the promulgation of the CourtÊs Decision in G.R.
No. 177600. And thirdly, his actuations were entirely
different from those of Judge LeeÊs, who downgraded the
offenses from two counts of murder with attempted murder,
two counts of frustrated murder, and one
_______________
31 Id., at pp. 236-237.

32 This history has been noted and listed in G.R. No. 159962, supra
note 21.
50

count of attempted murder to double homicide with

multiple frustrated homicide, and ordered the issuance of
the warrants of arrest for such downgraded offenses. Judge
Lee thereby directly contradicted the ruling in G.R. No.
159962.
Contempt of court is defined in jurisprudence in this

manner:
Contempt of court is defined as a disobedience to the Court by

acting in opposition to its authority, justice and dignity. It signifies
not only a willful disregard or disobedience of the courts orders, but
such conduct which tends to bring the authority of the court and the
administration of law into disrepute or in some manner to impede
the due administration of justice. Contempt of court is a defiance of
the authority, justice or dignity of the court; such conduct as tends
to bring the authority and administration of the law into disrespect
or to interfere with or prejudice parties litigant or their witnesses
during litigation.33
The contempt power of the courts has been discussed in

Sison v. Caoibes, Jr.,34 to wit:
Thus, the power to declare a person in contempt of court and in

dealing with him accordingly is an inherent power lodged in courts
of justice, to be used as a means to protect and preserve the dignity
of the court, the solemnity of the proceedings therein, and the
administration of justice from callous misbehavior, offensive
personalities, and contumacious refusal to comply with court
orders. Indeed, the power of contempt is power assumed by a court
or judge to coerce cooperation and punish disobedience, disrespect
or interference with the courts orderly process by exacting summary
punishment. The contempt power was given to the courts in trust

for the public, by tradition and necessity, inasmuch as respect for
the
_______________
33 Lu Ym v. Mahinay, G.R. No. 169476, June 16, 2006, 491 SCRA

253, 261-262.
34 A.M. No. RTJ-03-1771, May 27, 2004, 429 SCRA 258.
51
VOL. 773, OCTOBER 19, 2015 51

courts, which are ordained to administer the laws which are

necessary to the good order of society, is as necessary as respect for
the laws themselves.35
Verily, the power of the courts to punish for contempt is

to be exercised cautiously, sparingly, and judiciously.36 Self-
restraint in wielding contempt powers should be the rule
unless the act complained of is clearly contumacious. An
act, to be contumacious, must manifest willfulness, bad
faith, or deliberate intent to cause injustice.37
WHEREFORE, the Court DENIES the petition for

review on certiorari in G.R. No. 177600; DISMISSES the
petition for contempt in G.R. No. 178684; AFFIRMS the
Decision promulgated on April 24, 2007 by the Court of
Appeals in C.A.-G.R. S.P. No. 97121; and ORDERS the
petitioners in G.R. No. 177600 to pay the costs of suit.
The Regional Trial Court, Branch 76, in Quezon City is
DIRECTED to forthwith resume the proceedings in
Criminal Case No. Q-01-99892, Criminal Case No. Q-01-
99893, Criminal Case No. Q-01-100542, Criminal Case No.
Q-01-100543 and Criminal Case No. Q-01-100594; and to
report its compliance with this decision within 30 days
from notice.
SO ORDERED.
Sereno (CJ., Chairperson), Velasco, Jr.,** Leonardo-De

Castro and Perlas-Bernabe, JJ., concur.
_______________
35 Id., at p. 265.
36 De Guia v. Guerrero, Jr., A.M. No. RTJ-93-1099, August 1, 1994,
234 SCRA 625, 630.
37 In the Matter to Declare in Contempt of Court Hon. Simeon A.
Datumanong, Secretary of DPWH, G.R. No. 150274, August 6, 2006, 497
SCRA 626, 631.
** Designated acting member, in lieu of Associate Justice Jose
Portugal Perez, who is travelling to Canada on official business, per
Special Order No. 2253 dated October 14, 2015.
52

Petition in G.R. No. 177600 denied, while petition for

contempt in G.R. No. 178684 dismissed.
Notes.·Contempt is not a criminal offense. However, a

charge for contempt of court partakes of the nature of a
criminal action. Rules that govern criminal prosecutions
strictly apply to a prosecution for contempt. (Digital
Telecommunications Philippines, Inc. vs. Cantos, 710 SCRA
514 [2013])
Contempt of court is defined as a disobedience to the
Court by acting in opposition to its authority, justice and
dignity. (City Government of Baguio vs. Masweng, 717
SCRA 95 [2014])
··o0o··
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SUPREME COURT REPORTS ANNOTATED VOLUME 773 23/09/2019, 1)17 AM

G.R. No. 177600. October 19, 2015.*

MAYOR ANWAR BERUA BALINDONG, LT. COL. JALAN​-

G.R. No. 178684. October 19, 2015.*

ZENAIDA M. LIMBONA, petitioner, vs. HON. JUDGE

28 SUPREME COURT REPORTS ANNOTATED

COURT OF QUEZON CITY, BRANCH 76, respondent.

Remedial Law; Criminal Procedure; Probable Cause; The act of

frustrated murder, and one count of attempted murder, were

VOL. 773, OCTOBER 19, 2015 29

cussed in Sison v. Caoibes, Jr., 429 SCRA 258 (2004), to wit:

PETITION for review on certiorari of a decision of the

The issuance by the trial court of the warrant of arrest

30 SUPREME COURT REPORTS ANNOTATED

should still act and proceed independently of the executive

Before us are the consolidated cases of G.R. No. 177600

The CAÊs decision being assailed in C.A.-G.R. S.P. No.

The long-drawn controversy now raised in the instant petition

1 Rollo (G.R. No. 177600), pp. 58-72, penned by Associate Justice

VOL. 773, OCTOBER 19, 2015 31

liminary investigation the investigating prosecutor found probable

dispositive portion of our resolution dated August 4, 1999 is

32 SUPREME COURT REPORTS ANNOTATED

murder and an information for attempted murder against

the Court of Appeals, the RTC-Branch 219 issued a resolution

VOL. 773, OCTOBER 19, 2015 33

Q-01-100542-43, and Attempted Murder in Criminal Case No. Q-01-

„The Court Resolves to (a) EXPUNGE from the records of

34 SUPREME COURT REPORTS ANNOTATED

their counsel to pay heed to the directives of this Court and

Reconsideration of the 12 May 2006 Order issued by respondent

VOL. 773, OCTOBER 19, 2015 35

arraignment on December 11, 2006 in the 22 November 2006

Aggrieved by the orders issued on May 12, 2006 and

RESPONDENT JUDGES COMMITTED GRAVE ABUSE OF

On November 20, 2006, the Court promulgated its

2005 before Branch 100 of the RTC of Quezon City presided

4 Rollo (G.R. No. 177600) pp. 59-65.

36 SUPREME COURT REPORTS ANNOTATED

(3) Motion for Reconsideration of Judge JacobÊs January 4, 2006

VOL. 773, OCTOBER 19, 2015 37

sible for him to misread the import of said Decisions and

Thereafter, Judge Lee inhibited from the criminal cases,

suspended the enforcement of the alias warrants issued for

WHEREFORE, premises considered, the petition is hereby

7 Id., at pp. 75-76.

38 SUPREME COURT REPORTS ANNOTATED

The CA declared the assailed orders of Judge Lee and

There are no two ways to construe the 16 December 2004

VOL. 773, OCTOBER 19, 2015 39

The CA took note of the ruling of the Court in G.R. No.

Finally, whatever other grounds for opposition raised by private

respondents. In granting private respondentsÊ motion for

Balindong, et al. have appealed the CAÊs decision in

In G.R. No. 177600, Balindong, et al. submit the

18 Id., at pp. 69-71.

40 SUPREME COURT REPORTS ANNOTATED

PEALS AND ULTIMATELY TO THIS HONORABLE COURT (IN

MAYOR ANWAR BERUA BALINDONG, LT. COL. JALAN-