Metro Manila courts tighten security after Cebu shooting

Following a fatal shooting incident at a Cebu City court Tuesday, courts in Metro Manila on Wednesday adopted tighter security measures especially for high-profile cases. In Pasay City, the regional trial court ordered stricter inspections of people entering the premises, radio dzBB's Sam Nielsen reported. The report said the city's justice hall security personnel were ordered to not only use metal detectors, but also to have visitors open their bags for inspection. Security personnel there were also instructed to closely coordinate with city police in securing personalities involved in high-profile cases. Among the high-profile cases the Pasay City court is handling are the electoral sabotage case involving former President Gloria Arroyo and former poll chairman Benjamin Abalos, and the case stemming from the scuffle between columnist Ramon Tulfo and showbiz couple Claudine Barretto and Raymart Santiago. On Tuesday, a retired Canadian journalist, John Pope, shot dead a doctor and a lawyer during a court hearing in Cebu. Pope also shot and wounded a prosecutor in the incident. The Canadian national then ran out and was cornered by police officers. Pope then shot himself, although police claimed responding police personnel neutralized him. The incident prompted Chief Justice Lourdes Sereno to send Court Administrator Jose Midas Marquez to Cebu to look into the incident. — DVM, GMA News