Wrongfully Accused Must Be Indemnified - Legarda

Senator Loren Legarda said a person wrongfully convicted of a crime must be compensated by as much as twice the amount of the his or her income during the year prior to his incarceration or the amount of P100,000 for each year of incarceration, whichever is higher to indemnify him or her for the loss, injury and damage brought about by such wrongful conviction.

"We must concede that no justice system is perfect."

"There have been certain cases when the Supreme Court, upon review, reversed the decisions of the lower courts and decided to acquit the person wrongfully convicted."

"The Supreme Court's reversal of the ruling of the lower court consequently means that a person not otherwise guilty of the crime for which he or she was charged, had been incarcerated for a crime he or she did not commit."

Legarda's Senate Bill 1409 requires that the "claimant" should have established the following by clear and convincing evidence:

(1) HE WAS UNJUSTLY CONVICTED OF A CRIME AND SUBSEQUENTLY SENTENCED TO A TERM OF IMPRISONMENT, AND HAS SERVED ALL OR ANY PART OF HIS SENTENCE;

(2) HE DID NOT COMMIT THE CRIME FOR WHICH HE WAS CONVICTED; AND

(3) HE DID NOT BY HIS OWN CONDUCT CAUSE OR BRING ABOUT HIS CONVICTION.

"The State is the guardian of the rights of the people, thus it is incumbent upon the State to protect the rights of persons wrongfully convicted of a crime, " Legarda concluded.