SC junks De Lima plea to void arrest

Sen. Leila de Lima would remain in detention after the Supreme Court (SC) denied her appeal to void the drug-trading charges filed against her.

Initial reports after the full court deliberations on Tuesday said majority of justices voted against De Lima’s plea for reconsideration to nullify the arrest warrant against her issued by Muntinlupa Regional Trial Court (RTC) Executive Judge Juanita Guerrero.

A copy of the decision has not been issued as of late afternoon on Tuesday.

De Lima is detained at the Philippine National Police Custodial Center in Camp Crame, Quezon City, since Feb. 23, 2017.

The Department of Justice had charged De Lima with presiding over the illegal drug trade inside the New Bilibid Prison when she was justice secretary from 2010 to 2015.

The senator had denied the charges and cried political persecution.

She had argued before the Supreme Court that it was the Office of the Ombudsman and not the RTC which has jurisdiction over her case since she was accused of using her position as justice secretary to profit from the drug trade.

The high court, on Oct. 10, 2017, dismissed De Lima’s petition to nullify her arrest. She filed a motion for reconsideration which was also rejected.