Calling traffic officials “ignorant” can land one in jail.
A lawyer was handcuffed and detained at the Cebu City Police Office after he made a sweeping accusation that the Cebu City Traffic Office was “ignorant” for refusing to accept his demand letter.
Danilo Pilapil, 55 and former Mandaue City Attorney, was arrested for allegedly intervening in police operations.
Chief Insp. Andres Bayarcal, traffic police chief, said he decided to arrest Pilapil after the lawyer called his office ignorant for not accepting the lawyer's demand letter.
“Ignorante man ning opisinaha nga di modawat sa akong suwat,” Bayarcal quoted the lawyer.
But Pilapil said calling somebody ignorant was not a crime.
It was not a violation under the Revised Penal Code, he added.
Pilapil went to the Traffic Division's office yesterday to seek the release of his client, Harvey Magale who was detained for hitting a man while driving his vehicle in Lower Busay, Cebu City about 11 p.m. on Saturday.
The victim, Glenn Abella, died due to severe injuries.
Magale surrendered to the traffic office on Sunday morning.
Bayarcal said the act of showing up in the office was tantamount to surrender.
They detained Magale pending filing of criminal charges, he added.
Pilapil went to the traffic police to seek the release of his client.
He said mere appearance in the traffic office didn’t mean that Magale admitted that he committed a crime.
Magale's offer of financial assistance also proved that his client had no plans of running away from his obligation, he added.
Pilapil said the arrest was not covered by hot pursuit operation since the police didn’t have personal knowledge that his client hit and killed Abella.
He then gave his demand letter to Bayarcal.
Bayarcal read the letter but declined to formally receive it.
Frustrated, Pilapil called Bayarcal’s office as ignorant.”
Bayarcal then moved to arrest the lawyer.
“My alleged violation was obstruction of justice because I was convincing him to release my client),” said Pilapil.
Bayarcal said he did not the last part of Pilapil’s demand letter that threatened to file charges against him at the Ombudsman if his client was not released.
“There's a victim and they would be at a disadvantage if they would release Magale without a case filed against him yet,” said Bayarcal in Cebuano.
Bayarcal told Pilapil to just wait for the charges to be filed against his client and defend him at the Prosecutor's Office.
But, Pilapil said he could defend his client anywhere.
Bayarcal said he got angry when Pilapil called his office ignorant.
He said he would file illegal detention charges against Bayarcal for detaining his client.
His lawyer Maria Dolores Dela Serna Unchuan, will file charges of illegal arrest against the traffic police chief.
Pilapil said for the first time in 30 years as a lawyer, he encountered a policeman, who arrested a lawyer, for exercising his right to protect his client.
“Wa ko napriso sa martial law, karon pa hinoon (I was not jailed during Martial Law. It's just now),” said Pilapil.
Bayarcal said he would file obstruction of justice charges against Pilapil.
Unchuan, who is the daughter former governor Vicente “Tingting” dela Serna, said they would face the charges.
Pilapil said he was confident that the Cebu City Prosecutor's Office would dismiss the case for lack of probable cause.
“I have given him (Bayarcal) every chance. I wanted to settle the issues between us but he insisted on putting me in jail. I told him to think before doing anything. Now he can no longer sleep, thinking about the future of his career, that is if he still has a career,” Pilapil said.
Pilapil was Mandaue City Attorney when Restituto Soon was appointed acting Mandaue mayor by former president Corazon Aquino after the People Power I.
He was also Provincial Attorney during the term of former governor Dela Serna.
Pilapil, a law graduate from the University of San Carlos, passed the bar examination in 1979.
Cebu Daily News | Cebu's Only Independent Newspaper
Kuyaw na diay ni karon, basta2 na lang ka prisohon.. Cebu City Traffic Office is a public office so they should be open for criticisms. We are all entitled to our own opinion on how a public office is performing, besides it is for the court to decide whether such accusation is true.
Lawyer arrested for calling city traffic office ‘ignorant’
Read the facts first.
Originally Posted by ********r
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