MODULE 3

INTRODUCTION TO
PHILIPPINE CRIMINAL
JUSTICE SYSTEM

This module or any portion thereof may not be reproduced, copied, transmitted or
distributed in any manner whatsoever without the express written permission of the College or
the Author.
For permission: Contact Bataan Heroes College, Roman Super Hi-way, Balanga City
Bataan, Philippines.

SYRA B. ENRIQUEZ, RCrim

Criminal Justice Department
Bataan Heroes College

Course Information
Descriptive Title : INTRODUCTION TO PHILIPPINE CRIMINAL JUSTICE
SYSTEM

Program : Criminal Justice

Course Code : CLJ 1

Credit Units : 3

Instructor Information
Name : Syra B. Enriquez

Contact Information:

a. Number : 0951-102-7430
b. Facebook Page : https://www.facebook.com/enriquezsyra/
c. Email : syra.enriquez@heroes1979,edu.ph

Course Purpose and Description

This course deals with the study of formal and informal components of the Criminal
Justice System of the Philippines. It covers the respective mandates, processes, and interrelations
in the administration of criminal justice, and the other forms of justice system.

Intended Learning Outcomes

Upon successful completion of this course, students should be able to:

1. Familiarized the primary functions of prosecution as the 2 nd pillar of the Philippine Criminal
Justice System.
2. Identified the complete elements of an information
3. Witnessed how preliminary investigation and inquest proceeding are conducted by
prosecutor/s; and
4. Analyzed and evaluated the inter-agency relationship of the Philippine National Police and
Prosecution on matters of dispensation of criminal justice.

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MODULE NO. 3: THE PROSECUTION PILLAR: THE INVESTIGATOR

This Chapter presented the roles, duties and functions of the prosecution pillar as the 2nd pillar of
the Philippine Criminal Justice System.
HISTORY OF PROSECUTION
● The origin of the office of the prosecutor is found hundred of years ago in the jurisprudential
development and the common law of England.
● The general term attornatus was used in England official documents in the Middle Ages to
mean anyone who appeared for another as a pleader, attorney, or essoiner.
● The earliest laws of England defined crimes as being committed against a particular individual,
not against the state. The original prosecutor was a victim or an individual representing a victim
who stepped forward personally to initiate the prosecution of the alleged offender.
● Originally all crimes were torts; thus in early common law, any injury, whether to person or
property, was a tort. (A tort today is an injury to an individual that is not an offense against the
state). Later, the injury was considered an offense against the state.
● During the reign of Edward IV (1461-1483), William Husse was appointed attorney general of
England.
● Henry VIII (1509-1547) eliminated the vengeance prosecution system and in its stead provided
a system of “sergeants”, who were required to act as police prosecutors and to enforce penal
statutes. These sergeants were later to become well trained in the law.
Prosecute
Means to officially accuse someone of committing crime in a law court, or (of a lawyer) to
try to prove that the person accused of committing a crime is guilty of that crime.
Prosecutors
Prosecutors are charged with addressing violations of criminal law and promoting public
safety.
Ministers of justice and consider the rights, needs, and interests of all members of their
community, including victims and individuals who are charged with criminal conduct.
Prosecution
The process or method whereby accusations are brought before a court of justice to
determine the innocence or guilt of the accused.
Institution for a continuation of a criminal suit involving the process of exhibiting formal
charges against an offender before a legal tribunal pursuing to final judgement.
Prosecution in the Philippines
The Philippine legal setting, prosecutor serve as a lawyer of the government in criminal cases
and automatically considered an officer of the court at the same time a member of the DOJ,
which is under the executive branch of the government, thus independent from judiciary.
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Prosecutors involved to investigative process in order to:

 Review the legal strength of the case
 Review the action taken by the police while facts are still fresh; and
 Make better informed decisions concerning the state’s course of action.
What is the task of the National Prosecution Service (NPS)
- it is tasked as the prosecutorial arm of the government and is under the supervision and
control of the Department of Justice.
- has the duty to prosecute the criminal complaints.
- Presidential Decree (PD) 1275 of 1978 established the National Prosecution Service (NPS)
under the supervision of the secretary of the Department of Justice.
- empowered to investigate and prosecute all crimes described by the Revised Penal Code
(RPC), investigate administrative cases against its own officers, prepare legal opinions, or
queries about violations of the RPC and other laws, and to review appeals to resolutions cases by
prosecutors.
- NPS was strengthened and rationalized through the enactment of RA no. 10071 also known
as the Prosecution Service Act of 2010 that repealed PD 1275.
Head of the NPS is the Prosecutor General who is formerly called as the Chief State Prosecutor.
Division of the NPS
1. The inquest and Special Concerns Division
2. The Preliminary Investigation and Prosecution Division
3. The review and Appeals Division
4. The Administrative, Personnel Development and Support Services Division
5. The Disciplinary, Field Operations, and Special Concerns Division
What are Some of the Functions of a Prosecutor?
1. To conduct Preliminary Investigation.
2. To make proper recommendation during the Inquest of a case.
3. To Represent the government or state during the prosecution of the case.
4. To act as Law Officer of the province or city in the absence of Legal Officer.
5. To investigate Administrative cases filed against State Prosecutors.
Who must prosecute criminal action/ criminal cases?
All criminal actions either commenced by complaint or by information shall be prosecuted under
the direction and control of a public prosecutor.

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Probable Cause- is the knowledge of facts, actual or apparent, strong, strong enough to justify a
reasonable man in the belief that he lawful grounds for arresting the accused.
Factors Hampering the Effectiveness of the Prosecution
1. Delay due to overload and backlog of cases.
2. Uneven flow of case input
3. Charging process - use of discretion
4. Lack of coordination between and among law enforcers and judges
5. Prosecution - police liaison projects
6. Patronage employment of professional and non- professional staff members
7. Improvement of the internal management of the prosecutor
8. Training
9. Funding
10. Corruption
Complaint or Information
Shall be in writing, in the name of the People of the Philippines and against all
persons who appear to be responsible of the offense involved.
Complaint
A sworn written statement charging a person with an offense, subscribed by the
offended party, any peace officer, or other public officer charge with the enforcement of the
law violated.
Note: The complaint shall be in writing, in the name of the People of the
Philippines and against all persons who appear to be responsible for the offense involved.
Information
Is an accusation in writing charging a person with an offense, subscribed by the
prosecutor and filed with the court.
It is subscribed by a prosecutor while complaint, as mentioned earlier is usually
subscribed by a law enforcer.
Note: An information shall be in writing, in the name of the People of the
Philippines and against all persons who appear to be responsible for the offense involved.
Information is a technical term under the prosecution; it has legal meaning as
defined above which is different from information being used in police investigation or
police and military intelligence gathering operations.
When is a Complaint or Information Sufficient?

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It is sufficient if it states the following:

1. Name of the Accused
2. Designation of the Offense given by the statute;
3. Acts or omissions complained of as constituting the offense
4. Place of commission of the Offense
5. Approximate Date of Commission of the Offense
6. Name of the Offended Party
Resolution
Under the purview of the prosecution refers to a document prepared by prosecutor that contains
the result of his/ her findings; that is, whether holding the respondent for trial or dismissing the
case or complaint.
Criminal Investigation and Preliminary Investigation
Criminal Investigation is a fact- finding investigation carried out by the law enforcement
officers for the purpose of determining whether they should file a complaint for preliminary
investigation.
Preliminary Investigation is conducted by prosecutors for the purpose of determining if
there is a probable cause to hold a person for trial.
It is an inquiry or proceeding to determine whether there is sufficient ground to engender a
well founded belief that a crime has been committed and the respondent is probably guilty
thereof, and should be held for trial.
Probable Cause in Preliminary Investigation such facts and circumstances as would excite
the belief, in reasonable mind, acting on the facts within the knowledge of the prosecutor, that
the person charged was guilty of the crime for which was prosecuted.
When is it required?
It is required to be conducted before the filing of a complaint or information for an offense where
the penalty prescribed by law is at least (4) years, two (2) months and one (1) day without regard
to the fine.
What are the purposes of Preliminary Investigation?
Main purpose of preliminary investigation are the following:
1. To protect the innocent against, hasty, oppressive and malicious prosecution.
2. To secure the innocent from open and public accusation of trial, from trouble expense and
anxiety of a public trial.
3. To protect the state from useless and expensive trials.
Malicious Prosecution

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It is the doctrine that pertains to the persecution through the misuse of abuse of judicial
processes or the institution and pursuit of legal proceedings for the purpose of harassing,
annoying, vexing, or injuring an innocent person.
Officer Authorized to Conduct Preliminary Investigation:
1. Judges of the Municipal Trial Courts
2. Judges of the Municipal Circuit Trial Court
3. National and Regional State Prosecutors
4. Provincial or City Prosecutors and their assistants;
5. Such other officer that may be authorized by law.
What are the Differences of Preliminary Investigation and Inquest Proceeding?
Preliminary Investigation
It is an inquiry or proceeding to determine whether there is sufficient ground to engender a
well founded belief that a crime has been committed and the respondent is probably guilty
thereof, and should be held for trial.
When Preliminary Investigation proper?
1. Person is not yet arrested
2. Person is not yet detained
3. Regular Filing
4. To determined if there is probable cause to file an information
5. No warrant of arrest yet
Inquest
It is an informal and summary investigation conducted by a public prosecutor in a criminal
case involving persons arrested and detained without the benefit of a warrant of arrest issued by a
court for the purpose of determining whether said persons should remain under custody and
correspondingly charged in court.
When is Inquest Proceeding proper?
1. Person is already arrested
2. Person is already detained
3. Summary in nature
4. To determine if there is valid cause for the continued detention
5. No need for warrant of arrest
Purpose of Inquest

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 Ensure that the persons are not unlawfully detained.

 They are denied due process
 Establishes whether the evidence is sufficient enough to seek court approval to keep person
in detention.
THE PROSECUTOR AND THE POLICE
1. Prosecutorial discretion typically enters the picture immediately after the arrest, when the
police investigative reports are forwarded to the prosecutor for review.
2. The prosecutor screens and evaluates the document in order to decide whether to accept or
reject the case for prosecution.
3. The action of the prosecution is dependent upon the police initiatory action, whereby the
criminal justice system relies on the:
a) certainty of the arrest by the police.
b) certainty of conviction by an effective prosecution.
c) certainty of appropriate sentencing by the court.

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ENHANCEMENT ACTIVITY/OUTCOME
Activity 1. Identification (20 pts). Identify the terns being referred to by the statements below.
Write your answer on the separate sheet of paper.
1. It is conducted by prosecutors for the purpose of determining if there is probable cause to hold
a person for trial.
2. It refers to an inquiry or proceeding to determine whether there is sufficient ground to
engender a well founded belief that a crime has been committed and the respondent is probably
guilty thereof, and should be held for trial.
3. It means such facts and circumstances as would excite the belief, in reasonable mind, acting
on the facts within the knowledge of the prosecutor, that the person charged was guilty of the
crime for which he was prosecuted.
4. It refers to a document prepared by prosecutor that contains the result of his/ her findings; that
is, whether holding the respondent for trial or dismissing the case or complaint.
5. It is an informal and summary investigation conducted by a public prosecutor in a criminal
case involving persons arrested and detained without the benefit of a warrant of arrest issued by a
court for the purpose of determining whether said persons should remain under custody and
correspondingly charged in court.
6. It refers to an accusation in writing charging a person with an offense, subscribed by the
prosecutor and filed in the court.
7. It refers to an instance where in an information contains more than one charges against a
person.
8. It refers to a fact finding investigation carried out by law enforcement officers for the purpose
of determining whether they should file a complaint for preliminary investigation.
9. It refers to a doctrine that pertains to the persecution through the misuse of abuse of judicial
processes or the institution and pursuit of legal proceedings for the purpose of harassing,
annoying, vexing, or injuring an innocent person.
10. It refer as the gatekeepers in the justice system, who has a significant discretion to decide
whether to press charges and what those charges will be.

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Activity 2. The Role of the Prosecutor. Identify the roles of prosecutors by comping up with
word/s/phrase/s that starts with each letter comprising the term PROSECUTOR.

P -
R -
O -
S -
E -
C -
U -
T -
O -
R -

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