The killing of journalist Percival Mabasa, a.k.a. "Percy Lapid," continues to hug the headlines.
As I draft this article (Monday, 7 November 2022), the news reports that the alleged second middleman in the killing denies knowing the alleged gunman, and that murder raps are already being prepared against ten individuals who have been tagged as "persons of interest". The said term refers to those who are not necessarily suspects but are cooperating with the investigation, may have information that would assist the investigation, or possess certain characteristics that merit further attention.
The public knows that the case must be investigated by the Department of Justice, which under our criminal justice system is tasked to investigate the commission of crimes/offenses and prosecute the accused. However, the public seems confused that many agencies, such as the Philippine National Police, the National Bureau of Investigation, and the Bureau of Corrections are still doing their own investigation of the killing and are not just endorsing everything to the DoJ.
The perception is that the responsibility to investigate must be under a single agency, the DoJ.
Alas, this results in a misconception regarding the mandate of the DoJ, the various responsibilities within its purview, and the investigation process.
The DoJ is one of the most heavily tasked executive agencies in our government. Some of the important agencies under its supervision include the NBI, which is an expert in the gathering and safekeeping of criminal evidence; the Office of the Solicitor General, which handles the cases of almost all government offices heard by the Judicial branch; the Bureau of Immigration which is concerned with the laws concerning the entry and stay of aliens in the country; and the BuCor itself, which you often read about these days.
In addition, the Secretary of Justice is also a concurrent member of other agencies such as the Dangerous Drugs Board; the Anti-Money Laundering Council; the Inter-Agency Council on (Human) Trafficking; the Inter-Agency Council on Violence Against Women and Children; the National Water Resources Board; the Housing and Land Use Regulatory Board (now renamed Department of Human Settlements and Urban Development, and the Cyber Crime Office.
It is obvious that a lot is expected from the DoJ. The main agency itself, and the offices under it have tremendous work. If you visit any Prosecutor's office (the prosecutorial arm of the DoJ) in the country, you will see the high stacks of documents pending review.
It is incumbent upon the public to understand the multifarious functions of the DoJ.
Then there is the nature of the investigative process itself. Prosecutors do not just file cases arbitrarily. After a thorough investigation, there must be a reasonable basis for the filing of criminal information in court, which means the facts are sufficient to engender a well-founded belief that a crime has been committed and the ones charged are probably guilty of it.
A careful investigation involves very tedious processes of identifying witnesses, and getting their statements, which also necessitate the assistance and cooperation of police officers.
And what is the importance of investigators and prosecutors getting it right? Aside from the fact that it is their job, it is because it is better for the guilty to go free than for an innocent person to be punished for a crime that he did not commit. After all, the facts of a case were not reviewed thoroughly and meticulously.
It makes sense to trust the concerned authorities when they are doing their job. They really do their best and work hard, but most cases are not as simple as they may seem. Most, if not all, are unique and complex. In this light, it is best to reserve any negative opinion about how they perform their functions without any evidence to support the said opinion.
