CRIME IS MULTI-FACETED

 a social problem,
 a political problem,
 a spiritual problem, and
 an economic problem
 “The process in a community by
which a crime is investigated, and the
person(s) suspected for the
commission thereof is/are taken into
legal custody for prosecution in court
and for punishment, if found guilty,
with provisions being made for the
correction and/or rehabilitation of the
offender(s) to ensure renewed
assimilation into mainstream society
after service of sentence”.
 5
PILLARS
OF THE
CRIMINAL JUSTICE SYSTEM

E P C
N R O C
F O R O
C
O S R M
O
L R E E M
U
A C C C U
R
W E U T N
T
M T I I
S
E I O T
N O N Y
T N S
 COMMUNITY

Law
VIOLATOR Prose- Correc-
Enforce- Judicial
cution tional
ment

Flow of Violators through the Criminal Justice System

(Philippine System)
 The Five (5) Pillars of
Philippine Criminal Justice System

A. Law Enforcement
1. Members of the Philippine National Police
(PNP) - prime enforcers of the law

2. Members of the National Bureau of

Investigation (NBI) - which is under the
Department of Justice.
 I. The Philippine National Police (PNP)
Creation/Nature/Powers and Functions.

The 1987 Philippine Constitution itself

mandates that there should be one police
force that is national in scope and civilian
in character, and on the basis of this
constitutional precept, Republic Act No.
6975 created the Philippine National
Police as the premier law enforcement
agency that has the following powers and
functions :
a. Enforce all laws and ordinances relative to the protection of lives and
properties;

b. Maintain peace and order and take all necessary steps to ensure public safety;

c. Investigate and prevent crimes, effect the arrest of criminal offenders, bring

offenders to justice and assist in their prosecution;

d. Exercise the general powers to make arrest, search and seizure in accordance
with the Constitution and pertinent laws;

e. Detain an arrested person for a period not beyond what is prescribed by law,
informing the person so detained of all his rights under the Constitution;

f. Issue licenses for the possession of firearms and explosives in accordance with

law;

g. Supervise and control the training and operations of security agencies and issue

licenses to operate security agencies, and to security guards and private

detectives, for the practice of their profession; and

h. Perform such other duties and exercise all other functions as may be provided
by
law.
 PHILIPPINE NATIONAL POLICE
ORGANIZATIONAL STRUCTURE (PER RA 6975)

OFFICE OF THE CHIEF PNP

OFFICE OF THE
INSPECTOR GENERAL

OFFICE OF THE DEPUTY CHIEF OFFICE OF THE CHIEF OF OFFICE OF THE DEPUTY
FOR ADMINISTRATION THE DIRECTORIAL STAFF CHIEF FOR OPERATIONS

DIRECTORIAL STAFF

PERSONNEL & HUMAN POLICE

COMTROL- RESOURCE & RESEARCH & INVESTIGA-
RECORDS LOGISTICS PLANS DOCTRINE COMMUNITY INTELLIGENCE OPERATIONS
LERSHIP DEVELOPMENT TION
MANAGEMENT DEVELOPMENT RELATIONS

ADMINISTRATIVE SUPPORT UNITS OPERATIONA SUPPORT UNITS

POL-COM- COMMUNI-
LOGISTIC MEDICAL HQS CRIME AVIATION INTELLI- SPECIAL TRAFFIC
COMP. FINANCE ENGR. CHAPLAIN LEGAL MARITIME NARCOTICS MUNITY TIONS &
SUPPORT & DENTAL SUPPORT LABORA- SECURITY GENCE ACTION MGMT
SERVICE SERVICE SERVICE SERVICE SERVICE COMMAND COMMAND RELATIONS ELECT.
SERVICE SERVICE SERVICE TORY GROUP COMMAND FORCE COMMAND
COMMAND COMMAND

CRIMINAL
CIVIL
INVESTI- SECURITY
SECURITY
GATION COMMAND
GROUP
COMMAND0

14 REGIONAL
NCR COMMAND
COMMAND

5 NCR 77 PROVINCIAL 15 CITY * ORGANIZED IN

NCR REGIONAL 14 REGIONAL HIGHLY URBANIZED
DISTRICT POLICE POLICE CITIES
MOBILE FORCES MOBILE FORCES
COMMANDS COMMANDS COMMANDS*

NCR POLICE
STATIONS / PROVINCIAL DISTRICT ** ORGANIZED IN LARGE
PRECINTS MOBILE FORCE POLICE PROVINCES
COYS COMMANDS**

CITY/MNCPL
POLICE
STATIONS
2. The National Bureau of Investigation (NBI)

Creation

The National Bureau of Investigation saw its

inception on 13 November 1936 upon approval of
Commonwealth Act No. 181 by the legislature.

It was the brainchild of the late President Manuel

L Quezon. It was first organized as a Division of
Investigation (DI) patterned after the United States
Federal Bureau of Investigation.
 The Bureau assumes an increasingly
significant role as a law enforcement agency,
thus, on 19 June 1947 and by virtue of Republic
Act No. 157, it was reorganized into the Bureau
of Investigation.

The law was later amended by Executive

Order No. 94 issued on 4 October 1947 renaming
it into what it is presently known i.e. the National
Bureau of Investigation.
The National Bureau of Investigation is presently under the
Department of Justice performing the principal functions of
detecting, investigating, and prosecuting crimes towards the end of
preventing criminality. Among the activities the NBI conducts
are :
- to detect and investigate crimes;
- to investigate civil or administrative cases of interest to the
government upon request;
- to act as the national clearing house of criminal records and other
information;
- to give technical assistance to all prosecuting and law
enforcement agencies, to the courts, and even to litigants;
- to maintain a crime laboratory and to conduct research;
- to coordinate with the PNP and other law enforcement
agencies in the investigation of crimes;
- to collect intelligence date and coordinate even with other
international intelligence agencies;
- to assist in the implementation of the Dangerous Drugs Law.
The National Law Enforcement Coordinating
Committee (NALECC)
Law Enforcement Coordinating Committees
provides cooperation and inter-agency coordination
among all law enforcement agencies in the Philippines

Law Enforcement Coordinating Committees are

organized firstly on a national level known as the
National Law Enforcement Coordinating Committee
(NALECC).

Counterpart committees are also established in

the regions and in the provinces
 NALECC have the following duties and functions :

a. Serve as a forum for dialogue and coordination among

the government agencies engaged in the enforcement
of general and special laws;
b. Coordinate policies / procedures in order to facilitate
cooperation and integration of efforts among
member-agencies and ensure a unified direction in the
suppression of criminal activities;
c. Identify priority areas for coordinated joint law
enforcement activities;
d. Prepare and submit to the Chairman of the Peace and
Order Council for consideration/implementation, basic
strategies / plans which shall outline the enforcement
facet of the peace and order campaign as well as
delineate policies and thrusts in the effective
implementation of law enforcement function.
 The Peace and Order Councils (POCs)
Peace and Order Councils are created as avenues for
inter-agency coordination relative to the country’s peace and
order problems.

The Peace and Order Council is organized on a national

level (NPOC) with counterpart councils at regional levels and
provincial levels. The NPOC has the following functions :
a. To prepare and recommend for the approval of the President
proposals, measures, thrusts, and strategies that would effectively
respond to peace and order problems;

b. To coordinate and monitor peace and order plans, projects, and

operations of Civilian Volunteer Self-Defense Organizations and
such other counter-insurgency programs and activities;
c. To perform such other duties and functions as the President may
direct.
 B. Prosecution
National Prosecution Service

* the prosecution arm of the government

* composed of Provincial Prosecutors, City

Prosecutor,Regional Prosecutors, and State
Prosecutors

* placed under the supervision and control of

DOJ.
Private lawyers should also be deemed
part of the CJS Prosecution Pillar
because they already represent the
parties (the complainant or the
respondent) even in proceedings before
the Prosecutors. So also, public
defenders - such as the members of
the Public Attorneys Office (PAO) and
other Legal Aid Lawyers (IBP, CLAO,
FLAG, MABINI, UP, UST, etc.) - should
also be considered as part of the
Prosecution Pillar.
 C. Courts (Judicial)

The final determination of innocence or

of guilt is done by the Judicial Component (the
Courts) through the adjudication of criminal
cases
Suffice it to say that, in the context of
the Criminal Justice System, after a suspect
has passed through the Prosecution Pillar, he is
sent to the proper court of justice which shall
belabor itself in determining either innocence
or guilt.
 SUPREME COURT

COURT OF
APPEALS SANDIGANBAYAN

Court of Tax Regional Trial Shari‘a

Appeals Regional
Courts
Regional District Courts

Municipal Trial
Municipal Metropolitan Shari’a
Courts in the
Municipal
Trial Courts Metropolitan Shari’a
Circuit Courts
CitiesCourts
Trial Trial Courts
Metropolitan Shari’a
in Cities

Municipal Trial Municipal

Municipal
Municipal Circuit Trial
Municipal
Circuit
Courts
Municipal CourtsTrial
-Regular Courts Circuit Trial
-Special Courts
 D. Corrections
This pillar undertakes the reformation of offenders. The
rehabilitation of offenders is aimed towards their eventual
assimilation into society.

The key government agencies responsible for institutional

correction are the following :

1. The Bureau of Corrections.

charged with the custody as well as with the rehabilitation of

national offenders, that is, those sentenced to serve a term of
imprisonment of more that three (3) years.
 DIRECTOR

Asst. Dir. For

Admin

Public Info. Legal

Administrative Gen. Service Supply Management Budget & Accounting

Division Division Division Division Finance Div Division

Reception & Diagnostic New Bilibid Prison

Center
Correctional Institute for Woman

Davao Prison and Penal Farm

Ihawig Prison and Penal Farm

Sablayan Prison and Penal Farm

San Ramon Prison and Penal Farm

Leyte Regional Prison

 2. Provincial Jails
All provincial jails in the country are placed under the
respective provincial governments pursuant to the provision of Section
61 of Republic Act no. 6975 which states : “x x x The provincial jails
shall be supervised and controlled by the provincial government
within its jurisdiction x x x.”
3. Municipal Jails/City Jails
Municipal Jails and City Jails, on the other hand, are
administered by the Bureau of Jail Management and Penology (BJMP)
created also under RA No. 6975. BJMP is placed under the
Department of the Interior and Local Government.

BJMP is mandated to establish jails in every district,

city, and municipality and to maintain secured, clean, adequately
equipped, and sanitary jails for the custody and safekeeping not only
of city prisoners and municipal prisoners but also of : fugitives from
justice, detainees, and violent/mentally ill persons (Section 63, RA No.
6975).
 E. Community
After convicts have passed through the Correction
Component - either unconditionally (as by full service of the term of
imprisonment imposed on them), or by parole, or by pardon - they
revert to the COMMUNITY and either lead normal lives as law-
abiding citizen in their barangays or regrettably commit other
crimes and thus go back through the same stages of the Criminal
Justice System.
The community at large - through the appropriate legislative
agencies, public and private educational institutions, parents and
guardians, churches, religious organizations, civic associations, etc. -
develops and exacts conformity with acceptable moral and ethical
values, creates the environment for the development of civic-
spirited citizens, and fosters respect for and observance of the
Rule of Law.
In particular, members of the community having knowledge
of facts relevant to the investigation or prosecution of crimes, are
expected to cooperate with law enforcers and investigators, by
reporting crimes and giving evidence against the offenders.
 Attorneys in private practice, or pertaining to
associations committed to giving legal aid to indigent or
otherwise deserving individuals, should be reckoned as part of
the fifth component of the CJS, the community. They participate
directly or indirectly in the Criminal Justice System by rendering
legal advice to, or representing, persons involved in criminal
actions before the duly constituted authorities.
The Community Component should also include key
government institutions that play bit, albeit, important roles in the
CJS, such as the Bureau of Posts which delivers court documents,
notices, and other processes; the Bureau of Immigration &
Deportation which may prevent the departure of suspects from the
country; the Bureau of Telecommunications which transmits
communications by telephone, telegram, or radio; and government
hospitals and medical centers (like the National Psychopathic
Hospital) which furnish experts who may enlighten the courts on
issues involving medicine, surgery, or other sciences. Private
institutions and civic organizations should also be deemed part
hereof since they may also have significant roles to play in Criminal
Justice System.
 Of late, serious efforts have already been
started by the Philippine National Police, in
cooperation with the Department of Interior and Local
Government, to better empower the barangays (the
smallest political unit in Philippine society) as well as
other sectors of the community so that they may
serve the Criminal Justice System more
comprehensively.

This is in line with the Community Oriented

Policing System being adopted by the PNP pursuant to
the provision of Section 2 of Republic Act No. 8551
(which amended RA No. 6975) which declared that :
“The PNP shall be a community and service oriented
agency responsible for the maintenance of peace
and order and public safety.”
Importance of Coordination Among the Five Pillars

It should now be evident that the Philippine Criminal Justice

System is not just the agencies charged with law enforcement; not
just the prosecution arm of the government; nor just the courts; nor
just the correctional system, nor just the community. The Criminal
Justice System is all of these "pillars" considered collectively.

So also, it should now be obvious that, for an efficacious

Criminal Justice System to work speedily, it is essential for all these
five (5) pillars to work with dispatch and in full coordination with
each other. Any perceived failure of the CJS in a particular given
case due to some deficiency in one pillar cannot be blamed upon any
of the other pillars.