Arrests for accomplishment

The images of jail cells literally packed to the rafters, with inmates taking turns stretching out to sleep for lack of space, have disappeared as the brutal campaign against illegal drugs ended with the previous administration.

But the country’s detention facilities remain overcrowded, currently holding about 200,000 inmates, and many of them face charges for petty offenses. This is according to the secretary of justice himself. And Jesus Crispin Remulla says part of the reason is the propensity of the police to make arrests mainly so they can look good in their accomplishment reports.

Remulla noted that people are apprehended and tossed behind bars even for playing penny-ante street gambling games such as cara y cruz, or for merely being at the wrong place at the wrong time, such as innocent persons who unwittingly happen to be around at the site of a drug bust. Many of those arrested are impoverished persons whose families must scrounge for money to post bail. Considering the snail’s pace of Philippine justice, the innocent who can’t afford bail can languish in jail for years.

Remulla is appealing to the Philippine National Police to refrain from conducting “arrests for accomplishment.” Lawbreakers are arrested, he stressed, to curb criminality and keep the public safe. He urged the PNP to focus on the big fish rather than the small fry.

Human rights advocates will welcome Remulla’s message. But it could be disputed by those who believe in the socalled broken windows theory of policing – the idea that even minor but visible signs of disorder or misbehavior, such as windows deliberately broken, can lead to bigger offenses that pose serious threats to public safety.

While he is not discouraging the PNP from apprehending people for even minor offenses, Remulla says success in law enforcement is not measured by meeting a quota for arrests, but by the number of lawbreakers who land in prison after being convicted.

Apart from focusing on major crimes and offenders, Remulla also reminded the PNP to ensure the integrity of their procedures for arrest and the quality of evidence gathered. His message should resonate with the PNP’s Criminal Investigation and Detection Group, whose anniversary celebration he attended last Friday at the PNP headquarters at Camp Crame.

Law enforcers have lost several high-profile cases after the courts threw out the indictments because of technical deficiencies in the conduct of arrest and handling of evidence. Crimes can be deemed solved only if the perpetrators are arrested, prosecuted and convicted. Remulla’s message, if heeded, will help decongest jails, improve law enforcement and serve the interest of justice.