Criminal Procedure

Prepared by:
PLTCOL Hilberth Tacon Balanay

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 RULE 116
ARRAIGNMENT AND
PLEA

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 How is the arraignment made?

The arraignment shall be made in open

court by the judge or clerk by furnishing the
accused with a copy of the complaint or
information, reading the same in the language
or dialect known to him, and asking him
whether he pleads guilty or not guilty. The
accused must be arraigned before the court
where the complaint or information was filed or
assigned for trial.

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 Prohibited Motions Before the
Scheduled Arraignment

Prohibited motions shall be denied outright before

the scheduled arraignment without need of comment
and/or opposition:

 Motion for judicial determination of probable cause.

 Motion for preliminary investigation filed beyond the five

(5) day reglementary period in inquest proceedings
under Sec. 6, Rule 112 or when preliminary investigation
is required under Sec. 8, Rule 112, or allowed in inquest
proceedings and the accused failed to participate in the
preliminary investigation despite due notice.

OCA Circular No. 101-2017, Revised Guidelines for Continues Trial

4 of Criminal Cases that took effect on September 2017
 Prohibited Motions Before the
Scheduled Arraignment

• Motion for reinvestigation of the prosecutor

recommending the filing of information
once the information has been filed before
the court (1) if the motion is filed without
prior leave of court; (2) when preliminary
investigation is not required under Sec. 8,
Rule 112; and (3) when the regular
preliminary investigation is required and
has been actually conducted, and the
grounds relied upon in the motion are not
meritorious, such as issues of credibility,
OCA Circular No. 101-2017, Revised Guidelines for Continues Trial of
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admissibility
Criminal ofonevidence,
Cases that took effect September 2017 innocence of the
 Prohibited Motions Before the
Scheduled Arraignment

Motion to quash information when the

ground is not one of those stated in Sec. 3,
Rule 117
Motion for bill of particulars that does not
conform to Sec. 9, Rule 116.
Motion to suspend arraignment based on
grounds not stated under Sec. 11, Rule 116
Motion to suspend the criminal action on
the ground of prejudicial question, when no
civil case has been filed pursuant to Sec. 7,
6 Rule 111
OCA Circular No. 101-2017, Revised Guidelines for Continues Trial of
Criminal Cases that took effect on September 2017
 Meritorious Motions that may be Filed
Before the Scheduled Arraignment

 Motion to withdraw information, or to downgrade

the charge in the original information, or to exclude
an accused originally charged, filed by the
prosecution as a result of a reinvestigation, and
review;
Motion to quash warrant of arrest;
 Motion to suspend arraignment on the ground of an
unsound mental condition under Sec. 11, Rule 116;
 Motion to suspend proceedings on the ground of a
prejudicial question where a civil case was filed prior
to the criminal case under Sec. 11 (b), Rule 116;

OCA Circular No. 101-2017, Revised Guidelines for Continues Trial of

7 Criminal Cases that took effect on September 2017
 Meritorious Motions that may be Filed
Before the Scheduled Arraignment

Motion to quash information on the grounds that

the facts charged do not constitute an offense,
lack of jurisdiction, extinction of criminalaction
or liability, or double jeopardy under Sec. 3 par.
(a), (b), (g) and (i), Rule 117;
 Motion to discharge accused as a state witness
under Sec. 17, Rule 119
Motion to dismiss on the ground that the
criminal case is a Strategic Law Suit Against
Public Participation (SLAPP) under Rule 6 of the
Rules of Procedure for Environmental Cases.
OCA Circular No. 101-2017, Revised Guidelines for Continues Trial
8 of Criminal Cases that took effect on September 2017
 Waiver of the Reading of Information
during Arraignment

In multiple cases the court, upon

personal examination of the accused, may
allow a waiver of the reading of the
information upon the full understanding
and express consent of the accused
and his/her counsel, which consent shall
be expressly stated in both the
minutes/certificate of arrangement
and the order of arraignment.

OCA Circular No. 101-2017, Revised Guidelines for Continues

9 Trial of Criminal Cases that took effect on September 2017
 How is the plea made?

The accused must be present at the

arraignment and must personally enter his
plea.

Both arraignment and plea shall be

made of record, but failure to do so shall
not affect the validity of the proceedings.
S1(b) R116

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 When shall a plea of not guilty be
entered for the accused?

a) When the accused pleaded not guilty;

b) When the accused refused to plead;
c) When in admitting the act charged the
accused set up matters of defense;
d) When he enters a conditional plea

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 Appearance of the Offended Party
During Arraignment

The private offended party shall be

required to appear at the arraignment for
purposes of plea bargaining, determination
of civil liability, and other matters requiring
his presence.
In case of failure of the offended
party to appear despite due notice, the
court may allow the accused to enter a
plea of guilty to a lesser offense which
is necessarily included in the offense
charged with the conformity of the trial
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prosecutor alone. S1(f) R116
 What is Plea Bargaining?

The process whereby the accused

and the prosecutor in a criminal case work
out a mutually satisfactory disposition of
the case subject to court approval. It is
usually involves the defendant’s pleading
guilty to a lesser offense or to one or some
of the count of multi-count indictment in
return for a lighter sentence than that for
the graver charge.

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 Plea of Guilty to a Lesser Offense

Plea of guilty to a lesser offense. — At

arraignment, the accused, with the
consent of the offended party and the
prosecutor, may be allowed by the trial
court to plead guilty to a lesser
offense which is necessarily included
in the offense charged. After
arraignment but before trial, the accused
may still be allowed to plead guilty to said
lesser offense after withdrawing his plea of
not guilty. No amendment of the complaint
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or information is necessary. S2 R116
 Plea Bargaining in OCA Circular No.
101-2017

If the accused desires to enter a plea

of guilty to a lesser offense, plea bargaining
shall immediately proceed, provided that
private offended party in private crimes,
or the arresting officer in victimless
crimes, is present to give his/her consent
with the conformity of the public
prosecutor to the plea bargaining.
Thereafter, judgment shall be immediately
rendered in the same proceedings.
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 Plea Bargaining in Drug Cases

Section 23 of RA 9165 was declared

unconstitutional for being contrary to the
rule making authority of the Supreme
Court. OCA Circular No. 104-2019,
Adoption of Plea Bargaining Framework in
Drug Cases was issued in order to allow
acceptable plea bargaining in Drug Cases.

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 Plea Bargaining
An offense may be said to necessarily include another when some of the
essential elements or ingredients of the former as alleged in the
complaint or information constitute the latter. And vice versa, an
offense may be said to be necessarily included in another when the
essential ingredients of the former constitute or form part of those
constituting the latter.

In this case, the allegations in the Informations filed against petitioner are
sufficient to hold petitioner liable for the lesser offenses. Thus, in the charge for
Falsification of Public Documents, petitioner may plead guilty to the lesser
offense of Falsification by Private Individuals inasmuch as it does not
appear that petitioner took advantage of his official position in allegedly
falsifying the timebook and payroll of the Municipality of Bato, Leyte. In the
same vein, with regard to the crime of Malversation of Public Funds, while
the Informations contain allegations which make out a case for Malversation
against petitioner, nevertheless, absent the element of conversion,
theoretically, petitioner may still be held liable for Failure to Render
Account by an Accountable Officer if it is shown that the failure to render
account was in violation of a law or regulation that requires him to render such
an accounting within the prescribed period.
Daan vs. Sandiganbayan, G.R. Nos. 163972-
17 77, March 28, 2008
 Plea of Guilty to a Lesser Offense
after Arraignment

In the case at bar, the private respondent

(accused) moved to plead guilty to a lesser
offense after the prosecution had already
rested its case. In such situation,
jurisprudence has provided the trial court and
the Office of the Prosecutor with yardstick
within which their discretion may be properly
exercised. Thus, in People v. Kayanan (L-39355,
May 31, 1978, 83 SCRA 437, 450), We held that
the rules allow such a plea only when the
prosecution does not have sufficient
evidence
People vs. Villaramato establish
Jr., G.R. guilt
No. 99287, June 23, of the crime
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charged.
1992
 What is a Capital Offense?

A capital offense is an offense which,

under the law existing at the time of its
commission and of the arraignment, may
be punished with death.

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 Plea of Guilty to Capital Offense

When the accused pleads guilty to a

capital offense, the court shall conduct a
searching inquiry into the voluntariness and
full comprehension of the consequences of
his plea and require the prosecution to
prove his guilt and the precise degree of
culpability. The accused may present
evidence in his behalf. S3 R116

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 Plea of Guilty to Capital Offense
The rationale behind the rule is that courts must
proceed with more care where the possible punishment
is in its severest form--death--for the reason that the
execution of such a sentence is irrevocable and
experience has shown that innocent persons have at
times pleaded guilty. The primordial purpose then
is to avoid improvident pleas of guilt on the part
of an accused when grave crimes are involved
since he might be admitting his guilt before the
court and thus forfeit his life and liberty without
having fully understood the meaning,
significance and consequences of his plea.
Moreover, the requirement of taking further evidence
would aid the Supreme Court on appellate review in
determining the propriety or impropriety of the plea.
People vs. Lopit, G.R. No. 177742, December 17,
21 2008
 Plea of Guilty to Capital Offense

It is not enough to inquire as to the

voluntariness of the plea; the court must explain
fully to the accused that once convicted, he
could be meted the death penalty; that death
is a single and indivisible penalty and will be
imposed regardless of any mitigating
circumstance that may have attended the
commission of the felony. Thus, the importance of
the court's obligation cannot be overemphasized, for
one cannot dispel the possibility that the accused
may have been led to believe that due to his
voluntary plea of guilty, he may be imposed a lesser
penalty, which was precisely what happened here.

People vs. Lopit, G.R. No. 177742,

22 December 17, 2008
 Plea of Guilty to Non-capital Offense

When the accused pleads guilty to a

non-capital offense, the court may receive
evidence from the parties to determine the
penalty to be imposed. S4 R116

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 Plea of Guilty to Non-capital Offense
As to whether the offense charged is capital or not, the only
determinant factor is the information itself.

While the present Rules of Court makes it mandatory

for the court, when the accused pleads guilty to a
capital offense, to take additional evidence as to the
guilt of the accused and the circumstances attendant
upon the commission of the crime after the entry of
plea of guilty, that is not so in non-capital offenses. In
the latter, the reception of evidence is discretionary
with the court. It cannot then be said that the trial court
erred when it failed to require the prosecution to present
evidence in order to have some basis for the decision. At any
rate, records will show that herein accused was asked in open
court searching questions by the trial judge to determine the
voluntariness and
People vs. Flores, the
G.R. full
No. comprehension
137491, November of his plea.
24 23, 2000
 May a plea of guilty be withdrawn and be
substituted by a plea of not guilty?

Yes if the plea of guilt was

improvident and provided the judgment of
conviction has not yet become final. S5
R116. The withdrawal shall be made with
the permission of the court. The court has
the discretion to permit the withdrawal or
not.

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 Suspension of Arraignment

Upon motion by the proper party, the arraignment

shall be suspended in the following cases:

(a) The accused appears to be suffering from an unsound

mental condition which effective renders him unable to
fully understand the charge against him and to plead
intelligently thereto. In such case, the court shall order
his mental examination and, if necessary, his
confinement for such purpose;
(b) There exists a prejudicial question; and
(c) A petition for review of the resolution of the
prosecutor is pending at either the Department of Justice,
or the Office of the President; provided, that the period of
suspension shall not exceed sixty (60) days counted from
the filing of the petition with the reviewing office. S11
26 R116