People vs.

Vera, November 16, 1937

LAUREL, J.
Cu Unjieng was convicted by the trial court in Manila. He filed for reconsideration which was elevated to the SC
and the SC remanded the appeal to the lower court for a new trial. While awaiting new trial, he appealed for
probation alleging that the he is innocent of the crime he was convicted of. Judge Tuason of the Manila CFI
directed the appeal to the Insular Probation Office. The IPO denied the application. However, Judge Vera upon
another request by petitioner allowed the petition to be set for hearing. The City Prosecutor countered alleging
that Vera has no power to place Cu Unjieng under probation because it is in violation of Sec. 11 Act No. 4221
which provides that the act of Legislature granting provincial boards the power to provide a system of probation
to convicted person. Nowhere in the law is stated that the law is applicable to a city like Manila because it is only
indicated therein that only provinces are covered. And even if Manila is covered by the law it is unconstitutional
because Sec 1 Art 3 of the Constitution provides equal protection of laws. The said law provides absolute
discretion to provincial boards and this also constitutes undue delegation of power. Further, the said probation
law may be an encroachment of the power of the executive to provide pardon because providing probation, in
effect, is granting freedom, as in pardon.
ISSUE: Whether or not there is undue delegation of power.
HELD: The act of granting probation is not the same as pardon. In fact it is limited and is in a way an imposition
of penalty. There is undue delegation of power because there is no set standard provided by Congress on how
provincial boards must act in carrying out a system of probation. The provincial boards are given absolute
discretion which is violative of the constitution and the doctrine of the non delegability of power. Further, it is a
violation of equity so protected by the constitution. The challenged section of Act No. 4221 in section 11 which
reads as follows: This Act shall apply only in those provinces in which the respective provincial boards have
provided for the salary of a probation officer at rates not lower than those now provided for provincial fiscals.
Said probation officer shall be appointed by the Secretary of Justice and shall be subject to the direction of the
Probation Office. This only means that only provinces that can provide appropriation for a probation officer may
have a system of probation within their locality. This would mean to say that convicts in provinces where no
probation officer is instituted may not avail of their right to probation.