Demurrer To Evidence Without Leave Of Court; Waiver of Right To Present Evidence

See - Demurrer To Evidence Without Leave Of Court Waiver of Right To Present Evidence…

THE LAWYER'S POST.


"x x x.
Yet, the accused cannot be extended the benefit of People v. Bodoso and Rivera v. People. The factual milieus that warranted the safeguards in said criminal cases had nothing in common with the factual milieu in which the RTC deemed the herein accused to have waived her right to present evidence. The accused in People v. Bodoso, without filing a demurrer to evidence, expressly waived the right to present evidence. The Court felt that the trial court ought to have followed the steps outlined therein. The accused in Rivera v. People filed a demurrer to evidence without having to obtain an express leave of court, considering that the Sandiganbayan itself had told him to file the demurrer to evidence. Thus, after the demurrer to evidence was denied, the accused was held to be still entitled to present his evidence.

The accused and her counsel should not have ignored the potentially prejudicial consequence of the filing of a demurrer to evidence without the leave of court required in Section 15, Rule 119, of the Revised Rules of Court.[20] They were well aware of the risk of a denial of the demurrer being high, for by demurring the accused impliedly admitted the facts adduced by the State and the proper inferences therefrom.[21] We cannot step in now to alleviate her self-inflicted plight, for which she had no one to blame but herself; otherwise, we may unduly diminish the essence of the rule that gave her the alternative option to waive presenting her own evidence.”

x x x."

G.R. No. 159450, March 30, 2011, PEOPLE OF THE PHILIPPINES, PLAINTIFF-APPELLEE, VS. OLIVIA ALETH GARCIA CRISTOBAL, ACCUSED-APPELLANT.