Some detainees need to be temporarily released amid COVID-19 threat, says House panel

The House Committee on Justice sees the need to temporarily release non-violent, sick and elderly detainees from prison as the country continues to grapple with the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19).

According to a document shared to GMA News Online, the House justice panel, chaired by Leyte Representative Vicente Veloso III, is recommending to create an ad hoc committee that would evaluate the situation in detention facilities and establish procedures on the temporary release of qualified persons deprived of liberty in view of the COVID-19 emergency.

"Since the current COVID-19 crisis demands prompt action, there is a need to grant provisional liberty to detainees in highly congested jails outside the provisions of RA 10389, but still within the bounds of the Constitution and other existing laws," the document read.

RA 10389, or the "Recognizance Act of 2012," provides the requirements for the release of detained persons through recognizance, such as a certification of indigency, and a Sanggunian resolution approved by the mayor.

But the House panel recommended other qualifications that may be used in determining if a PDL is qualified for temporary release for humanitarian reasons, such as:

•     First-time offenders;
•     Age – those who are 60 years of age and above;
•     Health – those with underlying health conditions associated with high risk of severe symptoms of COVID-19;
•     Those who are detained for the commission of non-violent, bailable offenses, but have no capacity to post bail; and
•     Those with no history of jumping bail

"In sum, Cong. Veloso recommended the creation of an ad hoc Committee... to evaluate and draft guidelines for the temporary release of non-violent, first-time offenders, sick and elderly detainees awaiting trial in order to decongest heavily crowded jails to minimize impact of potential COVID outbreak," said House justice panel vice chair Alfredo Garbin Jr.

Under the House panel's recommendation, the ad hoc committee will be composed of representatives from the Supreme Court (SC), the Commission on Human Rights, the Department of Justice, the Department of the Interior and Local Government, the Department of Health, the Philippine National Police (PNP), the Bureau of Jail Management and Penology (BJMP), the Public Attorney’s Office, the National Prosecution Service, and the Integrated Bar of the Philippines.

The Supreme Court may also be given the authority to determine the procedures in releasing qualified PDLs who have already been arraigned, such as an omnibus reduction of bail to one peso, or any amount affordable to the detained person, the committee said.

Before being released, the DOH should also ensure that qualified PDLs are tested and cleared for COVID-19, and that they should also be subjected to regular monitoring by barangay officials and PNP personnel, the panel added.

Garbin said the House justice panel's recommendation was submitted to the Peace and Order Cluster of the House Defeat COVID-19 committee which drafted its report to be submitted to Speaker Alan Peter Cayetano as its chair.

On Wednesday, a group of elderly, sick, or pregnant political prisoners asked the Supreme Court to order their temporary release considering their health conditions that make them vulnerable to contracting COVID-19.

The Bureau of Corrections, which has custody of national prisoners, and the BJMP, which houses detainees awaiting or undergoing trial, nevertheless, said their facilities remain free of COVID-19.

Interior Secretary Eduardo Año has said jails were the "safest" places for detainees.  -NB, GMA News