Regional Trial Courts in Negros Oriental are all set to mark Judgment Day on Monday, Nov. 16, which is expected to be a very busy day for the different courts all over the country.
RTC Branch 30 Presiding Judge Rafael Crescencio Tan Jr. said Judgment Day is a Supreme Court-mandated activity for all courts to render judgment on all rested cases, to see whether there are accused who can be released from jail because of some reasons.
On Monday, all courts will have judgments promulgated simultaneously on the same day.
In the case of RTC Branch 30, Judge Tan said he has at least six cases for promulgation involving drugs that were earlier scheduled but had to reset its promulgation earlier than scheduled because of the high court order.
Courts with no cases to be promulgated will just have to send reports about the hearings they will be conducting on that day.
In his court, promulgation of cases is scheduled at the end of every month or even earlier. There was even one time when Judge Tan had 14 cases promulgated in one day, which is scheduled on a Friday.
According to the judge, on Monday the courts here will be expected to release or render verdict on prisoners who had been languishing in jails for several years through summary proceedings under the judgment day program of the Supreme Court.
The program is aimed at conducting speedy trial of cases to decongest the jails nationwide similar to the Justice on Wheels project of the high court which was also brought to Negros Oriental in the past years, wherein trials were heard inside Enhanced Justice on Wheels buses to speed up resolution of cases. (PNA)
