Estrada’s SC petition for TRO ‘dismissed’
Detained senator also wants to exclude Benhur Luy’s testimony
Estrada camp insists the questioned disbursement reports of JLN Corp. not whistle-blower’s property
THE Supreme Court (SC ) en banc dismissed on Tuesday the petition for certiorari with application for temporary restraining order (TRO) filed by Sen. Jose “Jinggoy” Estrada to restrain the Sandiganbayan from admitting into evidence the purported disbursement report of JLN Corp., as well as the testimony of pork barrel scam whistleblower Benhur Luy.
JLN Corp. is owned by businesswoman Janet Lim-Napoles, the alleged “brains” behind the P10-billion pork barrel and the P900-million Malampaya Fund scams.
SC Public Information Office Chief Theodore O. Te said, “The court denied the petitioner’s request for TRO but required respondents to comment on the petition within 10 days from notice.”
Disbursement reports
Estrada questioned the Oct. 31, 2014 minute resolution and Dec. 1, 2014 resolution of the Sandiganbayan’s Fifth Division denying his request to suppress and exclude the purported Daily JLN Corp. cash/ check disbursement reports and the testimony of Luy regarding the documents.
Estrada asked the SC to order the exclusion of the questioned documents and Luy’s testimony from the records of his criminal case.
He also asked the SC to issue a temporary restraining order (TRO) that will enjoin the Sandiganbayan from admitting the documents into evidence.
Estrada is facing plunder and graft charges before the Sandiganbayan in connection with the allegations that he is involved in the supposed misuse of Priority Development Assistance Fund (PDAF).
The pieces of evidence were presented by the prosecution in the proceedings on Estrada’s petition for bail.
NBI custody
The purported disbursement reports of the JLN Corp. are contained in the external hard drive of Luy which was turned over to the National Bureau of Investigation-Cybercrime Investigation Unit.
In his petition, Estrada accused the Sandiganbayan of committing grave abuse of discretion and violating his constitutional right against unreasonable searches and seizure.
“Senator Estrada invokes the commitment of the Constitution against unlimited arbitrary State power, as well as against any act in violation of the Bill of Rights. And so, Estrada comes before this court seeking its protection, this time from the actions of the Sandiganbayan in violation of his constitutional right against unreasonable searches and seizure, and made without or in excess of jurisdiction or with grave abuse of discretion amounting to lack or excess of jurisdiction,” the petition said.
The Estrada camp also insisted that the questioned disbursement reports are not the property of Luy.
“As an employee of JLN Corp., Luy does not own purported disbursement reports even if he supposedly encoded such electronic files, as intellectual property produced by an employee contemplated by such contract of employment belongs to the employer and not to the employee,” Estrada argued.
Estrada also argued that the “unauthorized access, collection and disclosure of the electronic files constituting the disbursement reports constitute a violation of Republic Act No. 10175 [Cybercrime Prevention Act of 2012].”
Under Section 12 of R.A. No. 10175, “data to be collected or seized or disclosed will require a court warrant.”
Violation
Hence, Estrada said that since the disclosure of Luy of the disbursement reports was not done by virtue of a court warrant, his testimony violates the Cybercrime Law.
He added that as a consequence for the failure to obtain a warrant for the disclosure of the disbursement reports as contained in an electronic data, the external hard drive and its contents are inadmissible in any proceedings as stated under Section 18 of R.A. No. 10175.