Article III (Bill of Rights)

Bill of Rights – may be defined as a declaration and enumeration of a person’s rights and privileges
which the Constitution is designed to protect against violations by the government, or by an individual or
groups of individuals. It is a charter of liberties for the individual and a limitation upon the power of the
State.
Classes of rights
The rights that a citizen of a democratic state enjoys may be classified into:
(1) Natural rights – rights possessed by every citizen without being granted by the State for they are
given to man by God as a human being created to his image so that he may live a happy life.
Examples: right to life, right to liability, right to property, and right to love.
(2) Constitutional rights – rights which are conferred and protected by the Constitution. Since they
are part of the fundamental law, they cannot be modified or taken away by the law-making body.
(3) Statutory rights – rights which are provided by laws promulgated by the law-making body and,
consequently, may be abolished by the same body. Examples: right to receive a minimum wage
and the right to adopt a child by an unrelated person.
Classification of constitutional rights
(1) Political rights – rights of the citizens which give them the power to participate, directly or
indirectly, in the establishment or administration of the government. Examples: right of
citizenship, right of suffrage, and right to information on matters of public concern.
(2) Civil rights – rights which law will enforce at the instance of private individuals for the purpose
of securing to them the enjoyment of their means of happiness. Examples: right to due process
and equal protection of the laws.
(3) Social and economic rights – rights which are intended to insure the well-being and economic
security of the individual. Examples: right to property and the right to just compensation for
private property taken for public use.
(4) Rights of the accused – civil rights intended for the protection of a person accused of any crime,
like the rights against unreasonable search and seizure, the right to presumption of
innocence, the right to a speedy, impartial, and public trial, and the right against cruel,
degrading, or inhuman punishment.
Due process of law – any deprivation of life, liberty, or property by the State is with due process if it is
done;
(1) Under the authority of a law that is valid or of the Constitution itself
(2) After compliance with fair and reasonable methods of procedure prescribed by law.
Equal Protection of the Laws signifies that “all persons subject to legislation should be treated alike,
under like circumstances and conditions both in the privileges conferred and liabilities imposed.
Search warrant is an order in writing issued in the name of the People of the Philippines, signed by a
judge and directed to a peace officer, commanding him to search for certain personal property and bring it
before the court.
Warrant of arrest is written order to arrest a person designated to take him into custody in order that he
may be bound to answer for the commission of an offense.
Right of privacy is concisely defined as the right to be left alone. It has also been defined as the right pf a
person to be free from undesired publicity, or disclosure and as the right to live without unwarranted
interference by the public in matters with which the public is not necessarily concerned.
Freedom of expression (freedom of speech and expression, and of the press) implies the right to
freely utter and publish whatever one pleases without previous restraint, and to be protected against any
responsibility for so doing as long as it does not violate the law, or injure someone’s character, reputation
or business.
- It also includes the right to circulate what is published.
The liberty of abode and travel is the right of a person to have his home in whatever place chosen by
him and thereafter to change it at will, and to go where he pleases, without interference from any source.
Essential or inherent powers of government
(1) Totality of governmental power – it is contained in three great powers namely : power of
eminent domain, police power, and power of taxation.
(2) Similarities – these powers are similar in the following respects:
(a) They all rest upon necessity because there can be no effective government without
them
(b) They are inherent in sovereignty ;hence, they can be exercised even without being
expressly granted in the Constitution although the conditions for their exercise may
be regulated and limited by the Constitution and by law
(c) They are ways by which the State interferes with private rights and property
(d) They are all legislative in character
(e) They all presuppose an equivalent compensation received, directly or indirectly, by
the person affected by the exercise of these powers by thw government.
Eminent domain is the right or power of the State or of those to whom the power had been lawfully
delegated to take (or expropriate) private property for public use upon paying to the owner a just
compensation to be ascertained according to law.
Miranda rights
You have the right to remain silent. Anything you say can be used against you in a court of law. You have
a right to an attorney present. If you cannot afford an attorney, one will be appointed for you.
Right to bail is available to any person arrested, detained, or otherwise deprived of his liberty, whether or
not an information (criminal complaint) has been filed against him.
Bail is the security required by a court and given for the provisional or temporary release of a person who
is in the custody of the law conditioned upon his appearance before any court as required under the
conditions specified.
Trial in the absence of the accused
(1) Conditions – the constitutional rights of the accused to be personally present and to be heard in
his defense by himself may be waived by him. Thus, trial may proceed not withstanding the
absence of the accused provided that three conditions concur:
(a) He has been arraigned
(b) He had been duly notified of the trial
 (c) His failure to appear is unjustifiable
(2) Reason for rule – the rule is in the interest of a speedy administration of justice which should be
afforded not only to the accused but to the offended party as well. An accused cannot, by simply
escaping, thwart his prosecution and possibly, eventual conviction provided only that the three
conditions mentioned are present.
Writ of habeas corpus is an order issued by a court of competent jurisdiction, directed to the person
detaining another, commanding him to produce the body of the prisoner at a designated time and place,
and to show sufficient cause for holding in custody the individual so detained.
Right against self – incrimination – no person shall be compelled to be a witness against himself. This
is a protection against self- incrimination which may expose a person to criminal liability.
(1) Basis – The right is founded on grounds of:
(a) Public policy, because if the party is thus required to testify, he would be placed under
the strongest temptation to commit the crime of perjury
(b) Humanity, because it prevents the extortion of confession by duress
(2) Right to silence – the constitutional guarantee protect as well the right of the accused to silence,
and his silence, meaning, his failure or refusal to testify may not be used as a presumption of guilt
or taken as evidence against him.
Involuntary servitude denotes a condition of enforced, compulsory service of one to another. It has been
applied to any service or labor which is not free, no matter under what form such service may have been
rendered.
Debt as intended to be covered by the constitutional guarantee, means any liability to pay money arising
out of a contract, express or implied.
Right against double jeopardy means that when a person is charged with an offense and the case is
terminated either by acquittal or conviction or in any other manner without the express consent of the
accused, the latter cannot again be charged with the same or identical offense.
Ex post facto law is one which, operating retrospectively :
(1) Makes an act done before the passage of a law, innocent when done, criminal, and punishes
such act
(2) Aggravates a crime or makes it greater than when it was committed
(3) Changes the punishment and inflicts a greater punishment than what the law annexed to
the crime, when committed
(4) Alters the legal rules of evidence and receives less testimony than or different testimony
from what the law required at the time of the commission of the offense, in order to convict
the offender.
Bill of attainder is a legislative act which inflicts punishment without a judicial trial.
-if the punishment is less than death, the act is called bill of pains and penalties.
-it is included within the meaning of bill of attainder as used in the Constitution.