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    Case Digest MONDIGUING Vs ABAD

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    Abeguel Sebandal
    The Supreme Court granted the petitioners' request to change the venue of their double murder trial from Lagawe, Ifugao to Baguio City. The petitioners claimed they could not expect a fair trial in Ifugao because the presiding judge was politically allied with their rivals, and their witnesses could be harassed. While venue changes should not be granted lightly, the Court has the power to order one to avoid a miscarriage of justice. Given the tensions and risks in Ifugao due to a political rivalry, a fair and impartial trial was not assured, so the venue was changed to Baguio City in the interest of justice.

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    Case Digest MONDIGUING Vs ABAD

    Uploaded by

    Abeguel Sebandal
    35 views2 pages
    The Supreme Court granted the petitioners' request to change the venue of their double murder trial from Lagawe, Ifugao to Baguio City. The petitioners claimed they could not expect a fair trial in Ifugao because the presiding judge was politically allied with their rivals, and their witnesses could be harassed. While venue changes should not be granted lightly, the Court has the power to order one to avoid a miscarriage of justice. Given the tensions and risks in Ifugao due to a political rivalry, a fair and impartial trial was not assured, so the venue was changed to Baguio City in the interest of justice.

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    Case Digest MONDIGUING vs ABAD

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    The Supreme Court granted the petitioners' request to change the venue of their double murder trial from Lagawe, Ifugao to Baguio City. The petitioners claimed they could not expect a fair trial in Ifugao because the presiding judge was politically allied with their rivals, and their witnesses could be harassed. While venue changes should not be granted lightly, the Court has the power to order one to avoid a miscarriage of justice. Given the tensions and risks in Ifugao due to a political rivalry, a fair and impartial trial was not assured, so the venue was changed to Baguio City in the interest of justice.

    Copyright:

    © All Rights Reserved
    Download as DOCX, PDF, TXT or read online from Scribd
    Download as docx, pdf, or txt
    35 views2 pages

    Case Digest MONDIGUING Vs ABAD

    Uploaded by

    Abeguel Sebandal
    The Supreme Court granted the petitioners' request to change the venue of their double murder trial from Lagawe, Ifugao to Baguio City. The petitioners claimed they could not expect a fair trial in Ifugao because the presiding judge was politically allied with their rivals, and their witnesses could be harassed. While venue changes should not be granted lightly, the Court has the power to order one to avoid a miscarriage of justice. Given the tensions and risks in Ifugao due to a political rivalry, a fair and impartial trial was not assured, so the venue was changed to Baguio City in the interest of justice.

    Copyright:

    © All Rights Reserved
    Download as DOCX, PDF, TXT or read online from Scribd
    Download as docx, pdf, or txt
    of 2

    MONDIGUING

    vs
    HON. ABAD
    GR No. L-41313, November 6, 1965
    FACTS:

    Petitioners Alipio Mondiguing and Andres Dunuan are two of the ten
    defendants accused of double murder, frustrated murder and attempted
    murder. The case was filed in connection with an ambuscade which was
    perpetuated at Baag, Banaue, Ifugao.
    Petitioners filed in this Court a petition to transfer the venue of the case to
    Baguio City or Quezon City. They claimed that they could not expect a fair
    and impartial trial in Lagawe, Ifugao because Judge Francisco Men Abad of
    the Court of First Instance of that province is a protege' of Governor Lumauig
    and his brother, former Congressman Romulo Lumauig, and because their
    witnesses would be afraid to testify for fear of harassment and reprisals. Their
    lives and the lives of their witnesses and lawyers would be in grave danger in
    Ifugao because of the tensions and antagonisms spawned by the case and
    the political rivalry between the Lumauig and Mondiguing factions.
    The Acting Solicitor General interposed no objection to the change of
    venue but he invited the Court's attention to the suggestion of Governor
    Lumauig that the case may be transferred to the proper court in Isabela in
    view of its proximity to Ifugao.
    Respondent Judge disputed the correctness or truth of the grounds relied
    upon for the change of venue and prayed that the petition be dismissed.
    The fact that the SC disqualified Respondent Judge from trying the
    electoral protests filed by Crescencio Paredes and Venancio Uyan against
    Gualberto Lumauig and John Laugbayan. In that case it was alleged that
    Respondent Judge was a political leader of Governor Lumauig and was
    recommended to his present position by the Lumauig brothers.
    ISSUE:

    Whether or not Mondiguing’s plea for a change of venue is justified.

    RULING:
    The Court finds the petition meritorious and held that the change of venue
    is justifiable.
    A change of the place of trial in criminal cases should not be granted for
    whimsical or flimsy reasons. “The interest of the public require that, to secure
    the best results and effects in the punishment of crime, it is necessary to
    prosecute and punish the criminal in the very place as near as may be where
    he committed his crime”. However, the Supreme Court is invested with the
    prerogative of ordering “a change of venue or place of trial to avoid a
    miscarriage of justice”(Sec. 5(4), Art. X of our Constitution).
    The SC possesses inherent power and jurisdiction to declare that the trial
    and disposition of a case pending in a Court of First Instance be transferred to
    another Court of First Instance within the same district whenever the interest
    of justice and truth so demand and there are serious and weighty reasons to
    believe that a trial by the Court that originally had jurisdiction over the case
    would not result in a fair and impartial trial and lead to a miscarriage of justice.
    In this instant case, a change of venue was ordered by the Supreme
    Court where it was shown that the accused might be liquidated by his
    enemies in the place where the trial was originally scheduled to be held.
    In the interest of a fair and impartial trial and to avoid a miscarriage of
    justice and considering that the life of the petitioner would be in danger if he
    will be tried in Lagawe, Ifugao, the Court grants the transfer of venue and
    renders its decision that the petitioner will be tried by the Circuit Criminal
    Court in the Baguio City.

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