AS ANTI-ILLEGAL DRUG operations snagged more suspected “shabu” peddlers in recent weeks, the sloppy handling of drug cases by police is now under the spotlight.  This as a police official, who granted media interview on condition of anonymity, has thrown accusations of corruption within the Bohol judiciary as the main reason why over 90-percent of cases involving illegal drugs either end up being dismissed by state prosecutors or the acquittal of accused drug personalities.  Judges and prosecutors have refrained to comment on said allegations due to several pending cases involving illegal drugs. However, a city lawmaker whose prominence among lawyers exudes in part from his reputed expertise in litigating drug-related cases, have come out to defend the judiciary by assailing the alleged irregularities perpetuated in our Courts.

 In a privilege speech during the Sangguniang Panlungsod (SP) session on Friday, City Councilor Alexander “Aleckoy” Lim condemned a news item published in a local newspaper which quoted the un-named police officer implying “pay-offs” have become the norm for arrested drug suspects to get a dismissal or acquittal by negotiating with prosecutors and judges through their defense attorneys.  Criticizing the police official's statement in the news report, Lim said “the judiciary is being cast in a bad light.”  While acknowledging that the illegal drug problem in the city and the entire province has reached a “shocking” level, the city lawmaker said the local police hierarchy should instead focus on cleaning up their ranks as he cited an admission made by Bohol PNP Director Dennis Agustin that “there are members of the PNP here who are involved in the illegal drug trade” and that “there are police members who are in the watchlist” which the local command of the PNP is “validating reports of their involvement.”  “Accusing our judges, prosecutors and lawyers to be involved in irregularities would not solve the main problem, which is the continued proliferation of illegal drugs,” Councilor Lim said.  Lim countered the running tirades by members of media aimed against him saying he being “unfairly and maliciously branded as a ‘protector' of drug personalities” despite declaring months ago that he will no longer represent drug personalities in Court. He challenged, “Anyone can check the records on the number of drug-related cases out of my entire case load.”

 LOW CONVICTION RATE, POLICE LAPSES

 According to Lim, the judiciary should not be blamed on the low conviction rate of drug-related cases.  Bungled drug cases, he said, are more often due to blunders committed by policemen who carried out arrests of drug suspects.  “If you ask our Court officers, they would tell you that police lapses are the main grounds for the dismissal of so many drug-related cases,” Lim added.  Lim explained that even if police operatives are able to seize kilos of “shabu” from drug personalities, if they fabricate pre-operation surveillance reports just to secure a defective warrant, fabricate charges or mishandle evidence, and other such irregularities surrounding the arrest, the case filed against arrested suspects are more likely to be dropped right at the prosecutor's level.  “Speaking from my extensive experience in handling drug cases, time and time again, it is the failure of apprehending policemen to built air-tight cases, inconsistencies in testimony and the non-appearance of prosecution witnesses are the basis of prosecutors and judges for such dismissals and acquittals,” he said.

 The Courts cannot be blamed for the “very dismal” conviction rate, according to Lim, as he urged law enforcement operatives to work harder to lessen the incidence of acquittal and dismissal.  Lim filed two legislative measures that were adopted en masse during Friday's SP session which aims to allocate more funds for the training and skills enhancement of those tasked to operate against drug personalities.  Lawyer-members of the SP, which include City Councilors Adam Relson Jala, Oscar Glovasa, Nerio Zamora II and Lim all agreed to conduct free workshops and give “intensive, regular lectures and trainings for City police operatives, especially those tasked in the anti-illegal drug campaign in order to equip them with knowledge on legal procedures, arrest protocols, handling of evidence and provide them with recent updates in apprehension and prosecution particularly on rules on the chain of custody and evidential technicalities.”  “If we cannot empower our police operatives, this situation will continue to happen every now and then and it is almost likely that our policemen will keep on bungling the process of prosecuting drug suspects even if there is enough evidence, just because they disregard the lawful procedures. Handling of evidence and arrest protocols are very clear and strict such as the requirement that barangay officials and media representatives should be present during the serving of warrants. This is a most common procedural flaw in drug operations that should be studied by the police instead of putting the blame on the members of the judiciary and lawyers like me,” Lim concluded.