The Supreme Court (SC) announced on Tuesday updated guidelines on plea bargaining in drug-related cases.
In a decision penned by Associate Justice Japar B. Dimaampao, the High Tribunal ruled that prosecutors must raise all their objections when an accused offers to plead guilty to a lesser offense.
Any objections not raised at the time will be deemed waived, the SC said.
The guidelines were detailed in the SC’s Clarificatory Guidelines on Plea Bargaining in Drug Cases, citing the 2022 case People vs. Montierro.
In that case, Rodulfo Aquino was charged with selling and possessing shabu but pleaded guilty to the lesser offense of illegal possession of drug paraphernalia. The Regional Trial Court (RTC) failed to evaluate the plea adequately, as it was submitted before the prosecution could present its evidence.
The SC noted that similar cases referred back to trial courts have led to unnecessary delays in resolution, undermining the intended efficiency of the plea bargaining system.
“Thus, any time and effort ‘saved’ by the plea bargaining system is effectively rendered nugatory,” the court stated.
If a prosecution objects to a plea bargain but cites only select grounds, other possible objections are waived. When multiple objections are raised but only one is addressed by the RTC, the appellate court or the SC will direct the lower court to resolve the remaining issues based on the Montierro guidelines.
If records are incomplete, the RTC must revisit the matter in full, applying both Montierro and the new ruling.
