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    Villa Raza

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    Alexander Julio Valera
    This case discusses the jurisdiction of city courts over estafa cases. The Supreme Court held that the city court of Cagayan de Oro City has jurisdiction over an estafa case involving Caesar Puerto, as the offense was committed in 1974 before increased penalties took effect. Applying the increased penalty retroactively would constitute an ex post facto law. As the penalty for the offense at the time was 6 years or less, the city court had concurrent jurisdiction with the Court of First Instance based on the Judiciary Law. The Supreme Court affirmed the Court of First Instance's order returning the case to city court.

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    Villa Raza

    Uploaded by

    Alexander Julio Valera
    43 views2 pages
    This case discusses the jurisdiction of city courts over estafa cases. The Supreme Court held that the city court of Cagayan de Oro City has jurisdiction over an estafa case involving Caesar Puerto, as the offense was committed in 1974 before increased penalties took effect. Applying the increased penalty retroactively would constitute an ex post facto law. As the penalty for the offense at the time was 6 years or less, the city court had concurrent jurisdiction with the Court of First Instance based on the Judiciary Law. The Supreme Court affirmed the Court of First Instance's order returning the case to city court.

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    This case discusses the jurisdiction of city courts over estafa cases. The Supreme Court held that the city court of Cagayan de Oro City has jurisdiction over an estafa case involving Caesar Puerto, as the offense was committed in 1974 before increased penalties took effect. Applying the increased penalty retroactively would constitute an ex post facto law. As the penalty for the offense at the time was 6 years or less, the city court had concurrent jurisdiction with the Court of First Instance based on the Judiciary Law. The Supreme Court affirmed the Court of First Instance's order returning the case to city court.

    Copyright:

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

    Villa Raza

    Uploaded by

    Alexander Julio Valera
    This case discusses the jurisdiction of city courts over estafa cases. The Supreme Court held that the city court of Cagayan de Oro City has jurisdiction over an estafa case involving Caesar Puerto, as the offense was committed in 1974 before increased penalties took effect. Applying the increased penalty retroactively would constitute an ex post facto law. As the penalty for the offense at the time was 6 years or less, the city court had concurrent jurisdiction with the Court of First Instance based on the Judiciary Law. The Supreme Court affirmed the Court of First Instance's order returning the case to city court.

    Copyright:

    © All Rights Reserved
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    of 2

    Republic of the Philippines

    SUPREME COURT
    Manila

    SECOND DIVISION

    G.R. No. L-46228 January 17, 1978

    THE PEOPLE OF THE PHILIPPINES, petitioner,


    vs.
    HON. ROLANDO R. VILLARAZA (as City Judge of Cagayan de Oro City), and CAESAR
    PUERTO, respondents.

    Francisco P. Rabanes, Edgardo Y. Raagas, Casiano A. Gamotin, Jr., Office of the City Fiscal of
    Cagayan de Oro City for petitioner.

    Eric Menchavez for respondent Caesar Puerto.

    AQUINO, J.:

    This case is about the jurisdiction of a city court in estafa cases.

    On December 3, 1975 an assistant city fiscal charged Caesar Puerto with estafa in the city court of
    Cagayan de Oro City for having issued on October 16, 1974 two bouncing checks for the total sum
    of P4, 966. 63 (Criminal Case No. 32140).

    City Judge Rolando R. Villaraza in his order March 31, 1976 noted that the accused had waived the
    second stage of the preliminary investigation. He directed that the case be elevated, for trial, to the
    court of First Instance or the Circuit Criminal Court.

    Upon petition of the prosecution, the Court of first Instance of Misamis Oriental, Cagayan de Oro
    Branch VIII, in its order of February 3, 1977 returned the case to the city court because in its opinion
    the case falls within the concurrent jurisdiction of the two courts and, the city court, as the first court
    which took cognizance of the case, should try it.

    Disagreeing with the Court of First Instance, respondent city judge in his order of April 21, 1977
    directed the re-elevation of the case. His view is that the case falls within the exclusive original
    jurisdiction of the Court of First Instance because estafa committed by the accused is punishable
    by prision mayor medium under Presidential Decree No. 818 which took effect on October 22, 1975
    and which amended article 315 of the Revised Penal Code.

    That order of respondent judge is assailed in the petition for certiorari filed in this Court on May 27,
    1977 by the office of the city fiscal of Cagayan de Oro City.

    We hold that the case was properly filed with the city court which has original jurisdiction over it. The
    estafa imputed to Caesar Puerto is punishable under article 315 of the Revised Penal Code
    by arresto mayor maximum to prision correccional minimum or four months and one day to two
    years and four months.
    The penalty of prision mayor medium, or eight years and one day to ten years, imposed by
    Presidential Decree No. 818, applies only to swindling by means of issuing bouncing checks which
    was committed or after October 22, 1975.

    That increased penalty does not apply to the estafa committed by Puerto on October 16, 1974. To
    apply it to Puerto would make the decree an ex post facto law. Its retroactive application is prohibited
    by articles 21 and 22 of the Revised Penal Code and section 12, Article IV of the Constitution.

    The city court has original jurisdiction over the case because the penultimate paragraph or section
    87 of the Judiciary Law, as amended by Republic Acts Nos. 2613 and 3828, provides that "judges of
    city courts shall have like jurisdiction as the Court of First Instance to try parties charged with an
    offense committed within their respective jurisdictions, in which the penalty provided by law does not
    exceed prision correccional or imprisonment for not more than six years or fine not exceeding six
    thousand pesos or both."

    As section 87 itself shows, that jurisdiction is concurrent with the court of First Instance which is
    empowered to try "all criminal cases in which the penalty provided by law is imprisonment for more
    than six months, or a fine of more than two hundred pesos" (Sec. 44[f], Judiciary Law. See People
    vs. Nazareno, L-40037, April 30, 1976, 70 SCRA 531).

    It was not necessary for the city court to have conducted the preliminary investigation of the case.
    The filing of the information by the fiscal presupposes that he had conducted the requisite
    preliminary investigation pursuant to Rule 112 of the Rules of Court and Republic Act No. 5180, as
    amended by Presidential Decree No. 77.

    WHEREFORE, the order of the Court of First Instance, returning the case to the city court, is
    affirmed and the two orders of the respondent city judge, elevating the case to the Court of First
    Instance, are set aside. The city court is directed to try the case. No costs.

    SO ORDERED.

    Fernando (Chairman), Barredo, Antonio and Concepcion Jr., JJ., concur.

    Santos, J., is on leave.

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