Burgos v.

Chief of Staff 133 SCRA 800 (1984)

Illegal search of newspaper offices and press freedom

F: On the basis of two warrants issued by the RTC of QC, the offices of the Metropolitan Mail and the We
Forum were search and printing machines, paraphernalia, motor vehicles and other articles used in the printing,
publication and distribution of the newspapers as well as papers and other literature seized on the ground that they
were used in the commission of the crime of subversion. Petitioners brought and action to annul the warrants and
compel the return of the things seized.

HELD: Petitioners' thesis is impressed with merit. Probable cause for a search is defined as such facts
and circumstances which would lead a reasonably discreet and prudent man to believe that an offense has
been committed and that the objects sought in connection with the offense are in the place sought to be
searched. When addressed to a newspaper publisher or editor, the application for a warrant must contain
a specification stating with particularity the alleged subversive materials he has published or intending to
publish. Broad statement in the application is a mere conclusion of law and does not satisfy the
requirement of probable cause. Another factor that makes the search warrants constitutionally
objectionable is that they are in the nature of general warrants. In Stanford v. State of Texas, the US SC
declared this type of warrant void. VV.

Burgos v. Chief of Staff, 133 SCRA 800 (1984), supra

HELD: As a consequence of the search and seizure, the premises of the "Metropolitan Mail" and "We
Forum" were padlocked and sealed, with the further result that the printing and publication of said
newspapers were discontinued. Such closure is in the nature of previous restraint or censorship abhorrent
to the freedom of the press guaranteed under the fundamental law and constitutes a virtual denial of
petitioner's freedom to express themselves in print. This state of being is patenly anathematic to a
democratic framework where a free, alert and even militant press is essential for the political
enlightenment and growth of the citizenry. VV.