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PHILIPPINE SUPREME COURT DECISIONS

FIRST DIVISION

[G.R. No. 16009. September 21, 1920. ]

UY KHEYTIN ET AL., Petitioners, v. ANTONIO VILLAREAL, Judge of First Instance for the Twenty-third Judicial District, ET AL., Respondents.

Crossfield & O’Brien, for Petitioners.

Attorney-General Paredes and Assistant Attorney-General Santos for Respondents.

SYLLABUS


1. CRIMINAL PROCEDURE; SEARCH WARRANT; MAY SEARCH WARRANT ISSUE FOR OPIUM? — Section 96 of General Orders No. 58 provides that a search warrant may issue to search (1) for property which was stolen or embezzled, and (2) for property which was used, or intended to be used, as the means of committing a felony. Held: Under this provision, whatever may be the technical common-law meaning of the word "felony" used in paragraph 2 of said section 96, a search warrant is not illegal which is issued to search for opium. It would be the height of absurdity to hold, upon technical grounds, that a search warrant is illegal which is issued to search for and seize property the very possession of which is forbidden by law and constitutes a crime.

2. ID.; ID.; OTHER ARTICLES SEIZABLE UNDER A SEARCH WARRANT. — "Search warrants have heretofore been allowed to search for stolen goods, for goods supposed to have been smuggled into the country in violation of the revenue laws, for implements of gaming or counterfeiting, for lottery tickets or prohibited liquors kept for sale contrary to law, for obscene books and papers kept for sale or circulation, and for powder or other explosive and dangerous material so kept as to endanger the public safety." (Cooley on Constitutional Limitations, 7th ed., p. 432.)

3. ID.; ID.; EFFECT OF IRREGULARITY IN THE ISSUANCE OF SEARCH WARRANT. — Even if the issuance of a search was tainted with irregularity, the property described therein and seized thereunder will not be ordered returned to the owner, nor will the latter be exonerated, if such property was in fact found in the place described in the application for search warrant.

4. ID.; ID.; WHAT PROPERTY MAY BE TAKEN UNDER A SEARCH WARRANT. — The law specifically requires that a search warrant should particulary describe the place to be searched and the things to be seized. The evident purpose and intent of this requirement is to limit the things to be seized to those, and only those, particularly described in the search warrant — to leave the officers of the law no discretion regarding what articles they shall seize, to the end that "unreasonable searches and seizures" may not be made, — that abuses may not be committed. Therefore, no other property than those described in the search warrant may be taken thereunder.

5. ID.; SEARCH WARRANT MAY NOT ISSUE FOR THE PURPOSE OF OBTAINING EVIDENCE. — Books of account, private documents, and private papers are property which man may lawfully possess, and cannot be seized under a search warrant, specially if their seizure is for the purpose of using them as evidence of an intended crime or of a crime already committed. The seizure or compulsory production of a man’s private papers to be used in evidence against him is equivalent to compelling him to be a witness against himself.


D E C I S I O N


JOHNSON, J.:


This is an original petition, filed in this court, for the writs of injunction and prohibition. It appears from the record that on April 30, 1919, one Ramon Gayanilo, corporal of the Philippine Constabulary, presented to the judge of the Court of First Instance of Iloilo an application for search warrant, the said Ramon Gayanilo stating in his application; "That in the house of Chino Uy Kheytin, Sto. Nino St., No. 20, Iloilo, under the writing desk in his store, there is kept a certain amount of opium." The application was subscribed and sworn to by the said complainant before the Honorable L. M. Southworth, judge of the Twenty-third Judicial District.

Upon that application the said judge, on the same day, issued a search warrant in the following terms:jgc:chanrobles.com.ph

"The United States, to any officer of the law.

"Whereas on this day proof, by affidavit, having been presented before me by Corporal Ramon Gayanilo, Philippine Constabulary, that there is probable cause to believe that in the house of Chino Uy Kheytin, Sto. Nino St., No. 20, under the desk for writing in his store there is kept a certain amount of opium.

"Therefore, you are hereby commanded during day or night to make an immediate search on the person of Uy Kheytin or in the house, Sto. Nino St., No. 20, for the following property opium and, if you find the same or any part thereof, to bring it forthwith before me in the Court of First Instance of Iloilo.

"Witness my hand this 30th day of April, 1919.

(Sgd.) "L. M. SOUTHWORTH,

"Judge of the Court of Iloilo."cralaw virtua1aw library

Armed with that search warrant, the respondent M. S. Torralba, lieutenant of the Philippine Constabulary, accompanied by some of his subordinates, on the same day (April 30th) searched the house of the petitioner Uy Kheytin and found therein 60 small cans of opium. They wanted to search also the bodega on the ground-floor of the house, but Uy Kheytin positively denied that it was his or that he rented it. Lieutenant Torralba wanted to be sure, and for this reason he placed a guard in the premises to see that nothing was removed therefrom, and then went away to find out who the owner of the bodega was. The next morning he learned from the owner of the house, one Segovia, of the town of Molo, that the Chinaman Uy Kheytin was the one who was renting the bodega. Thereupon Lieutenant Torralba and his subordinates resumed the search and then and there found and seized the following articles:jgc:chanrobles.com.ph

"No. 2. — One wrap of paper containing a broken bottle of opium liquid, which is kept in a tin box No. 1.

"No. 3. — One wrap of paper containing an opium pipe, complete, one opium container, one wrap of opium ashes, one rag soaked in opium and one thimble with opium.

"No. 4. — One leather hand bag containing 7 small bottles containing opium, with two cedulas belonging to Tian Liong, with key.

"No. 5. — One wooden box containing 75 empty cans, opium containers.

"No. 6. — One tin box containing 23 small empty cans, opium containers.

"No. 7. — One cardboard box containing 3 pieces of wood,

one old chisel, one file, one piece of soldering lead, one box of matches, 5 pieces of iron plates, and several other tin plates.

"No. 8. — One roll of 7
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