It’s difficult being a Philippine court sheriff - Joel R. San Juan

“I shot the sheriff.” Luckily that’s just a title of a song and that a sheriff being shot at while performing his duties has never happened yet in the country. Still, Filipinos can still remember one got punched several times by no less than the presidential daughter and Davao City Mayor Sara Duterte.

In 2011 Sheriff Abe Andres was punched several times by the mayor for insisting on demolishing houses inside a contested property in Barangay Soliman in Agdao district in Davao.

Andres was explaining that he was just implementing an order issued by Judge Emmanuel Carpio of the Regional Trial Court’s Branch 16 when the mayor suddenly threw punches.

Andres was rushed to the hospital after the incident.

No cake walk. Joel R. San Juan (December 6, 2017). It’s tough being a sheriff in the Philippines. The Broader Look. Business Mirror. businessmirror.com.ph/2017/12/06/its-tough-being-a-sheriff-in-the-philippines.

BASED on the study of the Office of the Court Administrator (OCA), being a sheriff is never a walk in the park due to many challenges and difficulties they have to confront in performing their duties.

Like in serving summons to individuals, the Court ratiocinated in the case of Manotoc v. Court of Appeals that, in the absence of the person named in the summons, there must be three attempts to serve summons on separate days before authorities can resort to “substituted service.”

“The question posed is whether the three attempts are still viable or [take] too much time,” the study said.

With regard to serving summons to a corporation, Rule 14, Section 11 of the Rules of the Court requires that xxx xxx xxx.Garnishment, mortgage. Joel R. San Juan (December 6, 2017). It’s tough being a sheriff in the Philippines. The Broader Look. Business Mirror. businessmirror.com.ph/2017/12/06/its-tough-being-a-sheriff-in-the-philippines.

IN cases involving garnishment, the report said sheriffs would usually encounter difficulty performing their tasks as some banks would refuse to receive notices. In law, garnishment is a court order directing that money or property of a third party (usually wages paid by an employer) be seized to satisfy a debt owed by a debtor to a plaintiff creditor. Sometimes sheriffs are referred to the head office. This adds to the cost and time spent on certain cases.

There are also challenges being encountered by sheriffs in cases involving foreclosure of real-estate mortgage.

“Relevant laws and rules, especially on the acts pertaining to rural banks and thrift banks, exemptions in the law given to corporations, partnerships and associations prevent the sheriffs from performing their jobs,” the study added.

Sometimes, sheriffs are caught in violence during xxx xxx xxx.

Threats, reports. Joel R. San Juan (December 6, 2017). It’s tough being a sheriff in the Philippines. The Broader Look. Business Mirror. businessmirror.com.ph/2017/12/06/its-tough-being-a-sheriff-in-the-philippines.

IN cases of replevin or repossession, the report said those who possess the object subject to replevin usually resist and issue grave threats against sheriffs.

In implementing writs of execution, sheriffs also confront numerous difficulties such as strong amount of resistance from defendants/respondents in implementation of demolition orders. They are also threatened with bodily harm. xxx xxx xxx

Low budget. Joel R. San Juan (December 6, 2017). It’s tough being a sheriff in the Philippines. The Broader Look. Business Mirror. businessmirror.com.ph/2017/12/06/its-tough-being-a-sheriff-in-the-philippines.

IF actual physical harm, threats and harassments are absent, sheriffs have to make do with insufficient budget for serving extrajudicial foreclosure.

The legal fee of sheriffs is also insufficient, especially for those in the province of Mindanao, the OCA study said.

“In serving summons, several attempts must be made to effectively serve the defendants,” the report said. “But sometimes problems arise when additional expenses are incurred in case of outside summons to be served in certain jurisdictions.”

The report explained these problems arise as xxx xxx xxx.

Role in the judiciary. Joel R. San Juan (December 6, 2017). It’s tough being a sheriff in the Philippines. The Broader Look. Business Mirror. businessmirror.com.ph/2017/12/06/its-tough-being-a-sheriff-in-the-philippines.

DATA obtained from the OCA showed that currently the number of sheriffs employed in the different courts in the country has reached 1,433.

In the Metropolitan Trial Court (MeTC) there are about 131 sheriffs; Municipal Trial Court (MTC), 240; Regional Trial Court (RTC) about 1,057; and Shari’a Court, 5.

Sheriffs’ roles and duties differ depending on xxx xxx xxx.

Duties, qualifications. Joel R. San Juan (December 6, 2017). It’s tough being a sheriff in the Philippines. The Broader Look. Business Mirror. businessmirror.com.ph/2017/12/06/its-tough-being-a-sheriff-in-the-philippines.

THESE sheriffs are also tasked to submit periodic reports to the Clerk of Court and perform related tasks and other duties that may be assigned by the Executive Judge and/or Clerk of Court.

Sheriffs assigned in the MeTC and MTC also perform the same duties and functions as their counterparts in the RTCs. xxx xxx xxx.

Grassroots role. Joel R. San Juan (December 6, 2017). It’s tough being a sheriff in the Philippines. The Broader Look. Business Mirror. businessmirror.com.ph/2017/12/06/its-tough-being-a-sheriff-in-the-philippines.

A per curiam (unanimous) decision of the Supreme Court considered sheriffs as the “grassroots of judicial machinery” since their “duties and functions put them in close contact with litigants.”

The SC added that the performance of their duties is vital in shaping the public’s perception of the judiciary.

Being so, sheriffs are expected to perform their duties honestly and efficiently. xxx xxx xxx.

Case vs. sheriffs. Joel R. San Juan (December 6, 2017). It’s tough being a sheriff in the Philippines. The Broader Look. Business Mirror. businessmirror.com.ph/2017/12/06/its-tough-being-a-sheriff-in-the-philippines.

THE case against the gentlemen from Tarlac City stemmed from the complaint filed by lawyer Augusto Santos, attorney-in-fact of the heirs of the late Lucio Gomez.

Santos filed an ejectment case on behalf of the heirs of Gomez against various informal settlers occupying their lot in Barangay Binauganan, Tarlac City.

The ejectment cases were filed before Branch 1 of the MTC of Tarlac City.

After summary hearing, Santos obtained a favorable judgment. xxx xxx xxx.

Promises, promises. Joel R. San Juan (December 6, 2017). It’s tough being a sheriff in the Philippines. The Broader Look. Business Mirror. businessmirror.com.ph/2017/12/06/its-tough-being-a-sheriff-in-the-philippines.

SANTOS said he asked Ibarra and Lacsina anew to implement the decision.

He recounted that the two sheriffs were reluctant to implement the decision. Ibarra cited his illness and impending retirement, while Lacsina stated the informal settlers were known to him as members of Iglesia ni Cristo, the same religious sect he belongs to.

Santos was then referred to Leaño for the implementation of the decision.

The complainant alleged that Leaño gave him an itemized list of expenditures when they met in a restaurant in Tarlac. According to Santos, Leaño required him to pay half of the expenses with the xxx xxx xxx.

Guilty verdict. Joel R. San Juan (December 6, 2017). It’s tough being a sheriff in the Philippines. The Broader Look. Business Mirror. businessmirror.com.ph/2017/12/06/its-tough-being-a-sheriff-in-the-philippines.

THE Office of the Court Administrator found the three sheriffs guilty of gross neglect and gross inefficiency in the performance of official duties.

It noted that while the estimated expense for the demolition were approved by the trial court, respondents failed to itemize and liquidate the expenses for the demolition and to issue official receipts upon receiving complainant’s money.

The SC adopted the findings and recommendations of the OCA. xxx xxx xxx. Their common offenses range from simple neglect of duty to gross neglect of duty and dishonesty.

Dizon, Zaragoza. Joel R. San Juan (December 6, 2017). It’s tough being a sheriff in the Philippines. The Broader Look. Business Mirror. businessmirror.com.ph/2017/12/06/its-tough-being-a-sheriff-in-the-philippines.

THERE’S also the case of Ricardo Dizon, Sheriff III of the MeTC of Mandaluyong City Branch 59, who was found guilty of simple neglect of duty in 2008 and was imposed a fine of P20,000.

The case against Dizon stemmed from the complaint of MeTC Branch 59 Presiding Judge Ofelia Calo and a certain Pablea Tamayo.

In the said case, Dizon received the writ of execution for implementation on September 20, 2004. But it took Dizon more than four months to partially implement the said writ on January 21, 2005.

Dizon reasoned out that it took him awhile to implement the writ due to Tamayo’s failure to provide him with police assistance. xxx xxx xxx.

Bundy cards. Joel R. San Juan (December 6, 2017). It’s tough being a sheriff in the Philippines. The Broader Look. Business Mirror. businessmirror.com.ph/2017/12/06/its-tough-being-a-sheriff-in-the-philippines.

IN 2009 Sheriff IV Dominador C. Masangkay and five other court staff were found guilty of dishonesty and ordered to pay a fine of P5,000 with a stern warning that a repetition of the same or similar acts in the future shall be dealt with more severity.

The case stemmed from the complaint filed by the Leave Division of the OCA-Office of Administrative Services, which found irregularities in the bundy card entries for the month of November 2009 of Masangkay and the other respondents. xxx xxx xxx.

Calo’s case. Joel R. San Juan (December 6, 2017). It’s tough being a sheriff in the Philippines. The Broader Look. Business Mirror. businessmirror.com.ph/2017/12/06/its-tough-being-a-sheriff-in-the-philippines.

IN 2012 Sheriff IV Arthur Calo of Branch 5 of the Butuan City RTC was found guilty of neglect of duty and conduct unbecoming a court employee and was fined in the amount of P20,000 to be deducted from the benefits due him.

The case stemmed from the complaint filed by lawyers Ricardo Gonzales and Ernesto Rosales.

In the said case, Calo was found to have been clearly remiss in the performance of his mandated duties by unilaterally giving occupants three months, instead of three days provided by the Rules, to vacate the property. When Calo did not evict occupants from the premises, a room containing their personal effects was padlocked, therefore xxx xxx xxx.

Hopefully, there won’t come a time when somebody would take seriously Bob Marley’s ditty.