REPUBLIC OF THE PHILIPPINES

THIRD JUDICIAL REGION

REGIONAL TRIAL COURT
Branch 74, Olongapo City
PEOPLE
OF
PHILIPPINES,

THE
Plaintiff,
CASE NO. 865-14
FOR: MURDER

- versus L/CPL
JOSEPH
PEMBERTON,

SCOTT

Accused.
x---------------------------------------x
URGENT EX-PARTE MOTION
FOR CORRECTION OF THE ARREST WARRANT
PRIVATE COMPLAINANT MARILOU S. LAUDE, by
counsel, respectfully files this Urgent Ex-Parte Motion for
Correction of the Arrest Warrant, and states that:
1. On 16 December 2014, the Honorable Court issued an arrest
warrant against Accused Joseph Scott Pemberton in
connection with the murder of Jeffrey Jennifer Laude.
2. However, the arrest warrant for said Accused was addressed
to Any officer of the law through the Department of Foreign
Affairs (DFA), Pasay City (emphasis supplied).
3. Consequently,
there
might
be
serious
difficulties
implementing the arrest warrant as it is addressed through
the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA), which is not a law
enforcement agency.
4. More importantly, coursing the arrest warrant through
DFA may subject its service and implementation to
DFAs interpretation of the legal circumstances of
Accused,
thus adversely affecting the power of
Honorable Court to implement the said arrest warrant.

the
the
the
the

5. What the arrest warrant unwittingly does is to give the DFA

the exclusive and plenary powers to determine the propriety
of its service to the Accused.
6. But the rule is that it is still the Court that has control over
any proceeding involving a jurisdictional matter brought
before it, even if it may well involve the countrys relations
with another foreign power. It is a legal and not a political
question, properly belonging to the judicial branch and not to
the political branch.
7. A very illustrative point of this was the holding of the
Supreme Court in Liang (Huefeng) v. People,1 to wit:
First, courts cannot blindly adhere and take on its
face the communication from the DFA that
petitioner is covered by any immunity. The DFAs
determination that a certain person is covered by
immunity is only preliminary which has no binding
effect in courts. In receiving ex-parte the DFAs
advice and in motu proprio dismissing the two
criminal cases without notice to the prosecution,
the latters right to due process was violated. It
should be noted that due process is a right of the
accused as much as it is of the prosecution. The
needed inquiry in what capacity petitioner was
acting at the time of the alleged utterances
requires for its resolution evidentiary basis that
has yet to be presented at the proper time. At any
rate, it has been ruled that the mere invocation of
the immunity clause does not ipso facto result in
the dropping of the charges. 2 (italics in the
original, internal citations omitted)
8. Further, as the civil action for the recovery of civil liability
arising from the offense charged3 shall be deemed

1
2
3

G.R. No. 125865, Jan. 28, 2000.

Id.
Section 1, Rule 111 of the Revised Rules of Criminal Procedure.
2

instituted with the criminal action..,4 the arrest warrant in

this criminal case is akin to the summons in a civil case.
9. Hence, Private Complainant as the party to the civil action
deemed instituted in this criminal action, respectfully prays
that the Honorable Court ORDER the correction of the arrest
warrant for Accused Joseph Scott Pemberton so that it states
Any officer of the law and the Department of Foreign Affairs
(DFA), Pasay City.
10.
This prayer is also consistent with usual court practice
addressing arrest warrants to Any officer of the law.
Further, rather than coursing said warrant through the DFA,
said agency is made only one of the parties involved in
effecting the warrant of arrest against PFC Pemberton.
11.
Moreover, this motion is urgently applied for since with
the Christmas season there will be a series of legal holidays
starting with 24 December 2014 wherein all the courts and
government offices will be closed. These are exigent
circumstances calling for the urgent consideration of this
motion.

PRAYER

WHEREFORE, premises considered, it is respectfully prayed

that the Honorable Court ORDER the correction of the arrest
warrant for Accused Joseph Scott Pemberton so that it states
Any officer of the law and the Department of Foreign Affairs
(DFA), Pasay City.
Other reliefs just and equitable under the premises are
likewise prayed for.
Makati City for Olongapo City, 17 December 2014.
ROQUE & BUTUYAN LAW OFFICES
Counsel for Private Complainant Marilou
S. Laude
4

Id.
3

1904 Antel Corporate Center

121 Valero Street, Salcedo Village
Makati City
Email: mail@roquebutuyan.com
Tel. Nos. 887-4445/887-3894;
Fax No: 887-3893
By:
H. HARRY L. ROQUE, JR.
Roll No. 36976
PTR No. 4264493/Jan 30, 2014/Makati
IBP No. 01749/Lifetime
MCLE Exemption No. IV-000513
(issued on Feb 15, 2013)

ROMEL R. BAGARES
Roll No. 49518
PTR No. 4264492/Jan 30, 2014/Makati
IBP No. 961461/Jan 29, 2014/Socsargen
MCLE Compliance No. IV-0011822
(issued on Jan 25, 2013)
GILBERT TERUEL ANDRES
Roll No. 56911
PTR No.4264862/Jan. 30, 2014/ Makati
IBP No. 961460/Jan. 29, 2014/Negros Occ.

MCLE Compliance No. IV-0011824

(issued on Jan. 25, 2013)
By:

14/Makati

VIRGINIA LACSA SUAREZ

Collaborating Counsel for Private
Complainant LABOR ADVOCATES FOR
WORKERS SERVICES (LAWS INC.)
Roll No. 41145
Lifetime IBP Member-LRN 05283
(April 27, 2005)
PTR # 4232794/01-07MCLE Compliance No. IV-0022951/7-62013
3rd Floor MKP Bldg., No. 22 Libertad St.
Mandaluyong City 1550
CP/Tel.No.09088159923/531-07-86/87
4

NOTICE OF HEARING
AND EXPLANATION

THE HON. CLERK OF COURT

Regional Trial Court
Branch 74, Olongapo City
PROS. EMILIE FE. M. DELOS SANTOS
Counsel for the People
City Prosecution Office
Olongapo City, Zambales

ATTY ROWENA GARCIA FLORES and

ATTY. BENJAMIN TOLOSA, JR.
Counsel for Accused Joseph Scott Pemberton
9k The Fort Residences
30th cor. 2nd Avenue
Burgos Circle
Bonifacio Global City
0399 Taguig
Metro Manila
Please take note that the undersigned counsel will
submit the foregoing Urgent Ex-Parte Motion for Correction
of the Arrest Warrant for the consideration and approval of
5

the Honorable Court immediately upon receipt, with waiver

of appearance and without further arguments due to the
urgency of the matter being raised.
Also, due to the shortage of messengerial services, time
constraint, and distance, this Urgent Ex-Parte Motion for
Correction of the Arrest Warrant is being served to other
parties by registered mail in accordance with Section 11,
Rule 13 of the Revised Rules of Court.

GILBERT TERUEL ANDRES