1.3.

Concepts, general and legal principles in affecting arrest, searches and

seizures;

ARREST
SECTION 1. Define arrest � Arrest is the taking of a person into custody in
order that he may be bound to answer for the commission of an offense.

SECTION 2. Arrest; how made � An arrest is made by an actual restraint of

the person to be arrested, or by his submission to the custody of the person making
the arrest.

No violence or unnecessary force shall be used in making an arrest and the

person arrested shall not be subject to any greater restrain than is necessary for
his detention.
What constitutes restrain?

Under Section 2 above mentioned, the custody or control, the assumption of

which is involved in an arrest, imports actual restraint or detention.
Accordingly, the mere utterances or words indicative of an arrest, or mere verbal
proffer of the warrant or personal service thereof is insufficient, except when
followed by a submission.

Who are those persons exempted from arrest?

The following are persons exempted from arrest:

1) Members of the Senate and Congress. They shall be privileged from arrest
during their attendance a the session of the Congress or Senate and in going to and
returning from the same for offenses punishable by not more than six years
imprisonment, and

2) Under the principles of International Law also exempt are foreign sovereigns,
ambassadors, ministers and persons belonging to their official entourage.
When may the use of force be justified?

The employment of unnecessary or unreasonable force or greater restraint than

what is needed for the detention of the person arrested is prohibited. Person
authorized to make arrest may, however, employ force or violence to the extent of
effectively overcoming active resistance to an arrest. And, it is not necessary
that the person arrested make an actual attack upon his captor. His refusal to
obey and surrender, or an attempt to escape suffices the justification for the
employment of force. (U.S. vs. Bertucio, 1 Phil. 47)

SECTION 3. Duty of arresting officer � It shall be the duty of the officer

executing the warrant without unnecessary delay to arrest the accused and to
deliver him to the nearest police station or jail.
What is essential to make a warrant of arrest valid.

For a warrant of arrest to be valid, it is essential that the person to be

arrested is identified by the terms of the warrant. If ever possible, the name and
description of the person to be served with a warrant of arrest must be inserted in
it. Where the name is unknown, the warrant must contain a description as will
enable the officer to identify the person to be served. (People vs. Veloso, 48
Phil. 169) If it does not contain the name of the defendant or any description of
designation by which he could be known and identified as the person sought, it is
void.

What is �John Doe� warrant? And what is necessary to make a sufficient warrant?
 A warrant issued upon an unnamed party is called a �John Doe� warrant. It is
necessary that the party should be sufficiently identified. Such a warrant must
contain the best description personae of the person to be apprehended; and this
description must be sufficient to indicate the proper person upon whom the warrant
is to be served. It should likewise state his personal circumstances, appearance
and peculiarities, give his occupation and place of residence, and any other
circumstances by means of which he can be identified. (Wharton�s Criminal
Procedure, pp. 51-56)

Does the power to arrest carry with is to confiscate articles found in the person
to be arrested? Explain.

An officer making an arrest has no right to confiscate any object found in

the possession of the party arrested unless 1) the object found in his possession
was used in the commission of the crime; or 2) was the fruit of the crime, or 3)
which might furnish the prisoner with the means of committing violence or of
escaping; or 4) which may be used as evidence in the trial of the case. (Moreno vs.
Ago Chi, 12 Phil. 439)

When may irregularity in issuance of order of arrest be considered waived?

Irregularity in the issuance of an order of arrest is waived by posting of a

bail bond. (Moreno vs. Ago Chi, 12 Phil. 439)

SEC. 4. Execution of warrant � The head of the office to whom the warrant of
arrest has been delivered for execution shall cause the warrant to be executed
within ten (10) days from receipt thereof. Within ten (10)
days after the expiration of such period, the officer to whom it was assigned for
execution shall make a return to the judge who issued the warrant and, in case of
his failure to execute the same, shall state the reasons therefore.

SEC. 5. Arrest without warrant; when lawful - A peace officer or a private

person may, without a warrant, arrest a person:

a) When, in his presence, the person to be arrested has committed, is actually

committing, or is attempting to commit an offense;

b) When an offense has in fact just been committed, and he has personal
knowledge of facts indicating that the person to be arrested has committed it; and

c) When the person to be arrested is a prisoner who has escaped from a penal
establishment or place where he is serving final judgment or temporarily confined
while his case is pending; or has escaped while being transferred from one
confinement to another.

In cases falling under paragraphs (a) and (b) hereof, the person arrested without a
warrant shall be forth with delivered to the nearest police station or jail, and he
shall be proceeded against in accordance with Rule 112, Section 7.

What must be necessary in all cases wherein the law authorizes a peace
officer to arrest without warrant?

In all the cases enumerated wherein the law authorizes a peace officer to
arrest without warrant, the officer making the arrest must have personal knowledge
that the person being arrested has committed, is actually committing, or is about
to commit an offenses in his presence or within his view, or of the time, place or
circumstances which reasonably tend to show such breach of peace.

The testimony of the officer on the commission of the offense in his

presence, or within his view by the person arrested, or on the facts and
circumstances that tended reasonably to show that said person had committed or was
about to commit an offense, would be sufficient basis for the City Fiscal to file
an information without prejudice to his presenting the other evidence and
witnesses, if any, at the trial to insure the conviction of the defendant. (Sayo
vs. Chief of Police, 80 Phil. 875)

What is the meaning of the phrase �commission of offense in the presence of a peace
officer or a private person?�

An offense is committed in the presence or within the view of an officer

within the meaning of the rule authorizing an arrest without warrant when the
officer sees the offense, although at a distance, or hears the disturbance created
thereby and proceeds at once to the scene thereof; or the offense is continuing, or
has not been consummated, at the time the arrest is made. (U.S. vs. Samonte, 16
Phil. 516)
What is the basis for its legality of an arrest without warrant?

In the case of U.S. vs. Sanchez, 12 Phil. 472, our Supreme Court held that
the legality of the detention does not depend upon the facts of the crime, but upon
the nature of the deed, wherefrom such characterization may reasonably be inferred
by the officer of functionary to whom the law at that moment leaves the decision
for the urgent purpose of suspending the liberty of the citizen. Good faith,
therefore, absolves arresting officer from liability if he arrest without warrant
upon reasonable grounds. (U.S. vs. Santos, 36 Phil. 442)

May an escaped convict have the right to demand that a person arresting him be
armed with a warrant?

Under paragraph (c) of Section 5, Rule 113, a convict who evades sentence by
escaping from the custody of a policeman or a penal institution may be arrested
without warrant by a peace officer or by a private individual. (Salonga vs.
Holland, 76 Phil. 412) An escaped convict, therefore, has no right to demand that
a person arresting him be armed with a warrant. (Salonga vs. Holland, 76 Phil.
412)

SEC. 6. Time of making arrest � An arrest may be made on any day and at any
time of the day or night.

SEC. 7. Method of arrest by officer by virtue of warrant � When making an

arrest by virtue of a warrant the officer shall inform the person to be arrested of
the cause of the arrest and of the fact that a warrant has been issued for his
arrest, except when he flies or forcibly resists before the officer has opportunity
to inform him or when the giving of such information will imperil the arrest. The
officer need not have the warrant in his possession at the time of the arrest but
after the arrest, if the person arrested so requires, the warrant shall be shown to
him as soon as practicable.

In the method of arrest by officer by virtue of a warrant, does it mean that said
officer must have the possession of the warrant at the time of the arrest?
Explain.

Under Section 7, Rule 113, the officer need not have the warrant in his
possession at the time of the arrest but after the arrest, if the person arrested
so requires, the warrant shall be shown to him as soon as practicable.

What the officer should do is to inform the person to be arrested of the

cause of the arrest and of the fact that a warrant has been issued for his arrest.
This method of arrest does not apply when the person to be arrested flies or
forcibly resists before the officer has opportunity to inform him or when the
giving of such information will imperil the arrest.

SEC. 8. Method of arrest by officer without warrant � When making an arrest

without a warrant, the officer shall inform the person to be arrested of his
authority and the cause of the arrest, unless the person to be arrested is then
engaged in the commission of an offense or is pursued immediately after its
commission or after an escape, or flees or forcibly resists before the officer has
opportunity to inform him, or when the giving of such information will imperil the
arrest.

Distinguish the two methods of arrest provided for in Sections 7 and 8

The following are the two distinctions between these two methods of arrest:

1) In section 7, when making an arrest by virtue of a warrant, the officer shall

inform the person to be arrested of the cause of the arrest and of the fact that a
warrant has been issued for his arrest; while in Section 8, when making an arrest
without a warrant, the officer shall inform the person to be arrested of his
authority and the cause of the arrest; and

2) The method required in Section 7 does not apply when the person to be
arrested flees or forcibly resists before the officer has the opportunity to inform
him or when the giving of such information will imperil the arrest, while the
method in Section 8, does not apply when the person to be arrested is then engaged
in the commission of an offense, or is pursued immediately after its commission or
after an escape, or flees or forcibly resist before the officer has the opportunity
to inform him, or when the giving of such information will imperil the arrest.

SEC. 9. Method of arrest by a private person � A private person when making an

arrest shall inform the person to be arrested of the intention to arrest him and
cause of the arrest, unless the person to be arrested is then engaged in the
commission of an offense, or is pursued immediately after its commission or after
an escape, or flees or forcibly resists before the person making the arrest has
opportunity to inform him, or when the giving of such information will imperil the
arrest.

What must be required for a private person to make arrests?

The power of a private person to arrest without warrant is one that must be
exercised in utmost good faith or else it would be an excuse for violation of the
individual liberties guaranteed in the Constitution. (People vs. Gala, CA-G.R. No.
L-13244-R, Dec. 15, 1955)

SEC. 10. Officer may summon assistance � An officer making a lawful arrest
may orally summon as many persons as he deems necessary to aid him in making the
arrest. Every person so summoned by an officer shall aid him in making such
arrest, when he can render such aid without detriment to himself.

What do you understand about an agent of authority?

It has been held that the phrase an �agent of authority� includes not only
those persons who, by direct provision of law or by appointments of competent
authority are charged with the maintenance of public order and the protection and
security of life and property, but also such persons who come to their aid,
provided they lend their assistance by virtue of an order or request of such agent
of authority. (People vs. Gala, CA-G.R. No. L-13244-R, Dec. 15, 1955)
In effect, where a private person makes an arrest for an offense not
committed in his presence or on pursuit, he should, before making the arrest,
notify the person to be arrested of the cause of the apprehension, but this duty is
dispensed with when the person to be arrested knows of the intention to arrest and
the case thereof.
SEC. 11. Right of officer to break into building or enclosure � An officer in
order to make an arrest either by virtue of a warrant or when authorized to make
such arrest for an offense without a warrant, as provided in Section 5, may break
into any building or enclosure in which the person to be arrested is or is
reasonably believed to be, if he is refused admittance thereto, after he has
announced his authority and purpose.
What are the two instances when forcible entry of dwellings or buildings is made by
officer in order to effect arrest?
The following are two instance when forcible entry of dwellings or buildings
may be made by officer in order to effect arrest:
1) An officer has authority to break open the outer or other doors of a dwelling
house of the person whose arrest is directed by the writ, and enter and search the
dwelling to arrest the offender, woven though it is during the nighttime. This
right to break the outer doors to make an arrest includes, of course, the right to
break open doors of different rooms and chambers in the house to make a thorough
search of the premises.

From this point if follows that an officer who has a warrant for the arrest of a
person in a house and who upon being refused admittance breaks the door, cannot be
considered as a trespasser even though, upon search, the defendant named in the
process is not found or shown to be in the dwelling at the time. It is not
necessary that the house the officer may have broke into, be the property of the
defendant; it is sufficient if it is a house in which, for the time being, he is
dwelling in.

2) Arrest after escape or rescue without warrant � From the duty of an officer
to hold his prisoner in his custody flows the right to pursue those who illegally
make their escape and while on fresh pursuit he may arrest them without warrant,
and may make search without a warrant of any premises in which he has reasonable
ground to believe the prisoner is hiding for that purpose he may, after due demand
for admission and refusal, force an entry into the building or premises to be
searched.

Does a private person in making arrest, posses the right to break into a building?

A private person may justify breaking into and entering another�s dwelling
house if such breaking is necessary for the purpose of making an arrest for a
felony or to prevent the commission of a felony.
When may notice of purpose and demand for admission necessary? Give exception, if
any.

It is a rule that an officer or a private person, before breaking into and

entering the house of another to arrest a person, under a warrant of arrest or
order of arrest or for a crime or breach of the peace where a warrant is not
necessary, should make known his purposes and demand admittance. One exception is,
if a person fortifies himself in his home with the avowed intention of defying an
arrest to the extent of shedding blood, notice of purpose and demand for admission
is not necessary.

SEC. 12. Right to break out of building or enclosure to effect release �

Whenever an officer has entered the building or enclosure in accordance with the
provisions of the preceding section, he may break out therefrom when necessary for
the purpose of liberating himself.

SEC. 13. Arrest after escape or rescue � If a person lawfully arrested

escapes or is rescued, any person may immediately pursue or retake him without a
warrant at any time and in any place within the Philippines.

SEC. 14. Right of attorney or relative to visit person arrested �

any member of the bar shall, at the request of the person arrested or of another
acting in his behalf, have the right to visit and confer privately with such
person, in the jail or any other place of custody at any hour of the day or, in
urgent cases, of the night. This right shall also be exercised by any relative of
the person arrested subject to reasonable regulation.