MANILA – A woman judge in the Metro Manila lower court on Thursday got the “hot assignment†of trying the multiple murder charges filed against members of a powerful clan allegedly involved in the massacre of 57 people in Maguindanao province in Mindanao more than three weeks ago.
She is Judge Jocelyn Solis Reyes of the Regional Trial Court (RTC) in suburban Quezon City, Metro Manila, who drew the assignment after a new raffle was conducted Thursday afternoon in the city’s Hall of Justice.
Earlier, Judge Luisito Cortez was assigned to handle the case but he immediately rejected the assignment, citing concerns over his own safety and security and that of his family despite assurances of full from the Philippine National Police (PNP).
Mediamen tried but failed to get the reaction of Reyes because members of her staff said she was attending the traditional Christmas party being held inside her chamber.
However, Jefferson Soriano, the PNP deputy director general, disclosed that after the raffle result was known, he called up Reyes who “welcomed†the assignment to try the case.
Reyes, according to Soriano, also rejected the PNP offer to immediately assign to her a “close-in†security as well as other policemen to ensure the safety and protection of the other members of her family.
Reyes is to try the multiple murder charges arising from the massacre after the Supreme Court (SC) granted the petition of the government to transfer the venue from Cotabato City in Mindanao to a lower court in Metro Manila.
In its resolution, the SC assigned the case to a lower court in Quezon City but on condition that the trial be held inside the PNP headquarters in Camp Crame also located in the city.
Named as principal accused in the charges is Mayor Andal Ampatuan Junior of Datu Unsay, the son and namesake of a powerful Mindanao clan headed by its patriarch former governor Andal Ampatuan of Maguindanao.
Mayor Ampatuan was alleged by the police to have masterminded the massacre of the 57 people, including the wife and two sisters of the scion of a rival clan as well as 30 Mindanao-based journalists in the town of Ampatuan on November 23.
Meanwhile, a nongovernment organization, the Volunteers Against Crime and Corruption (Vacc), announced on Thursday, it would file administrative and criminal charges against Judge Luisito Cortez for dereliction of duty due to his refusal to try the charges against Mayor Ampatuan and about more than 100 others, composed mostly of militiamen, policemen and soldiers identified as supporters of the clan.
Dante Jimenez, the Vacc chairman, denounced Cortez for allegedly shirking from his sworn duty as a member of the judiciary to try cases assigned to him without fear or favor.
Other government officials and lawmakers also joined in the rising clamor, especially for the immediate resignation of Cortez who, however, said he was ready to accept the consequences of his decision.
Secretary Agnes Devanadera of the Department of Justice said: “If I were him, I would look for another job because I easily get frightened. That is unacceptable.â€
Administration Senator Miriam Defensor-Santiago, also a former lower court judge, said the decision of Cortez has a “chilling effect†on judges. She pointed out that being in the line of fire is part of the job of a judge.
On the other hand, Senate Minority Leader Aquilino Pimentel Junior demanded that Cortez be punished by the Supreme Court for dereliction of duty.
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