When can police implement warantless arrest, search and seizure?

Malacañang officials on Wednesday stressed that the scenarios specified that qualify warrantless arrests, searches, and seizures in suppressing lawless violence in Mindanao and preventing it from spreading and escalating elsewhere in the country have been part of the Philippine laws.

Executive Secretary Salvador Medialdea, the government’s caretaker while President Rodrigo Duterte is away for his foreign trip, clarified that the circumstances and instances that allow warrantless arrests, searches, and seizures mentioned in Memorandum Order (MO) No. 3 are emphasized to remind the police and soldiers about such rules in implementing Proclamation No. 55 declaring a state of national emergency on account of lawless violence in Mindanao.

Palace releases MO#3 providing guidelines for the AFP, PNP to suppress, prevent lawless violence pic.twitter.com/pUP8nMqkqc

— Trisha Macas (@trishamacas) September 7, 2016

“Iyon namang warrantless arrest at saka seizures po, huwag po kayong mabahala doon kasi iyan ay existing po iyan. In-emphasize lang po natin dito sa guidelines para malaman din ng ating kapulisan na ito ay dapat nating sundan,” he said in an interview on Super Radyo dzBB.

Presidential Communications Office (PCO) Assistant Secretary for Legal Affairs Marie Banaag also said that the specific cases were taken from the Constitution and the Revised Penal Code.

“They are already existing. In fact, they are based on the Constitution and based on the Revised Penal Code. Whether the proclamation was issued or not, they still take effect. They are still part of the law of the land,” she explained.

The four circumstances that allow warrantless arrest mentioned in MO No. 3 are the following:

• The person to be arrested has committed, is actually committing, or is attempting to commit an offense in the presence of the arresting officer
• An offense has just been committed and the arresting officer has personal knowledge of facts indicating that the person to be arrested committed the offense
• The person to be arrested is a prisoner who has escaped from a penal establishment or place where is serving final judgment or temporary confined while his case is pending
• The person arrested, or to be arrested, has voluntarily waived his right against warrantless arrest

These four circumstances also appear on Rule 113 of the Rules of Court.

“Gusto nating makita na ang constitutional rights of every individual are fully respected and given due regards. Specifically, in-emphasize po natin na no warrantless arrest at sa warrantless searches and seizures they must be observed strictly,” Medialdea in the radio interview said.

Warrantless search and seizure

Meanwhile, the memorandum order also specified situations where warrantless search and seizure are okay to do:

• The person to be searched has consented to the search or has voluntarily waived his right against warrantless searches and seizures
• An incident to a lawful arrest, and the search is made contemporaneous to the arrest and within a permissible area of search
• Search of vessels and aircraft for violation of immigration and customs laws
• Search of automobiles at borders or “constructive” borders for violation of immigration or smuggling laws
• The objects and effects to be seized are in plain view
• Stop-and-frisk situations
• Search arising from exigent and emergency circumstances

It also said that in checkpoints, inspection will be limited to a request to roll down vehicle windows and search for things in plain view and to produce identification and vehicle registration papers. There will be no request to open trunks or lid or for passengers to step out unless they give consent.

In stop-and-frisk situations, search will be limited to light patting on the outer garments to detect weapons or similar objects.

“The memorandum was issued to limit to what the AFP and PNP may do. As you can see, we put a premium to civil rights. And we would like to emphasize the Proclamation No. 55 is not meant to undermine the Bill of Rights,” Banaag stressed. —ALG, GMA News