Lawyer Lorna Kapunan faces slander for accusations vs UST law dean
Credit to Author: The Manila Times| Date: Wed, 29 May 2019 08:00:47 +0000
THE Department of Justice (DoJ) filed criminal charges against lawyer Lorna Kapunan for slander or grave oral defamation in connection with the accusations she publicly made against a Law dean.
In two separate resolutions released on Wednesday, the DoJ found probable cause to prosecute Kapunan for slander under Article 358 of Revised Penal Code for her statements against Nilo Divina of the University of Santo Tomas (UST) College of Law in TV interviews she granted in 2017.
The prosecutors said Kapunan was criminally liable for her allegation that Divina and his law firm paid millions to former Commission on Elections (Comelec) chairman Andres Bautista for a favorable ruling on their client and another insinuation that the law dean was liable for the fatal hazing of UST law freshman Horacio Castillo 3rd by his fraternity Aegis Juris.
“There is basis to charge respondent lawyer Lorna Kapunan for the crime of grave oral defamation for the statements that she made during her interview with ANC on 26 September 2017 considering the presence of all its elements,” read the first resolution approved by Acting Prosecutor General Richard Anthony Fadullon.
The DoJ panel composed of Senior Assistant Prosecutors Rassender Rex Gingoyon and Olivia Torrevillas and Associate City Prosecutor Laurence Joel Taliping wrote the findings.
The DoJ stressed that the statements made by Kapunan during the interview — that Divina and his law firm made humongous payments to Bautista to sway him to act in their supposed client’s favor — “were imputations of a crime which were made orally, publicly and maliciously and were all directed to the complainants.”
The prosecutors made the same conclusion on the second case.
“We find basis to charge respondent for grave oral defamation for the statements respondent made during an interview with ANC News Channel on 27 October 2017. It would appear that respondent imputed the commission or violation of the Anti-Hazing Law (RA 8049) against the complainant by being the recruiter of Horacio Castillo and assuring the latter that there would no no physical activity or hazing,” they said.
“The respondent also insinuated that the complainant was obstructing the apprehension and prosecution of criminal offenders when he allegedly coddled the members of the Aegis Juris fraternity members who participated during the hazing rites when they went to the dean’s house,” they said.
The DoJ also junked the libel case filed against Divina for lack of probable cause.
It said that the element of publication was missing in these cases since it was not proven that Kapunan was the source of the allegations against Divina. JOMAR CANLAS
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