This case has been cited 2 times or more.
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2014-03-12 |
SERENO, C.J. |
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| Probation is not a right but a mere privilege, an act of grace and clemency conferred by the State, and may be granted by the court to a deserving defendant. Accordingly, the grant of probation rests solely upon the discretion of the court. It is to be exercised primarily for the benefit of organized society, and only incidentally for the benefit of the accused.[16] | |||||
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2002-08-21 |
PER CURIAM |
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| years," which he could have otherwise done had he ordered the release only after he had instructed the accomplishment of the case study. Putting the discharge of the accused on hold would have allowed Judge Mijares more time to pass upon the request for provisional liberty. In addition, the unsolicited fervor to release the accused significantly deprived the prosecution and the private complainants of their right to due process. Contrary to the argument of respondent Judge, the prosecution along with the private complainants has every right to be heard on the application of the accused for temporary liberty upon recognizance. To stress, probation is a mere privilege and discretionary upon the court, to be exercised primarily for justice and public interest and merely incidentally for the benefit of the accused.[40] Certainly, if respondent Judge's discretion is to be exercised soundly, as he should have done, he had no better witnesses to hear than the prosecution and the private complainants who, having definitely greater stakes than others in the untimely liberty of the accused, could have disproved the propriety of his provisional discharge of the accused for being disadvantageous to society. More than anything else, respondent-Judge has shown either utter disregard for or total ignorance of the basic provisions of the Probation Law. It need not be underscored that one of his basic obligations is to understand the law fully and uphold it conscientiously. When the | |||||