ARTICLE III:

BILL OF RIGHTS

SECTION 5

No law shall be made respecting an establishment of religion or prohibiting the free exercise thereof. The free exercise and enjoyment of religious profession and worship, without discrimination or preference shall forever be allowed. No religious test shall be required for the exercise of civil or political rights.

2 ASPECTS OF RELIGION
Freedom to believe which is absolute, not being subject to outside inquiry and therefore, no man shall legally question the validity of his own belief; Freedom to practice ones belief which is no longer absolute for it is limited or restricted by the police power of the state; hence, a man may believe in murder as a religious obligation but he could not commit it without being punished by law.

RELIGIOUS FREEDOM

Is the right of a man to worship God, and to entertain such religious views as appeal to his individual conscience, without dictation or interference by any person or power, civil or ecclesiastical (of or associated with a church (especially a
Christian Church)

SECTION 6

The liberty of abode and of changing the same within the limits prescribed by law shall not be impaired except upon lawful order of the court. Neither shall the right to travel be impaired except in the interest of national security, public safety, or public health, as may be provided by law.

LIBERTY OF ABODE AND TRAVEL

Means 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.

The liberty of abode and travel may be provided be impaired by the following:

Upon lawful order of the court as when the court orders a fugitive from justice to be arrested, not allowing him to get out of the country; When necessary in the interest of national security, public health, as when a law may prohibit lepers from getting outside the leprosarium to protect public health or when the Chief Executive orders an alien deported for undermining the security of the state.

SECTION 7

The right of the people to information on matters of public concern shall be recognized. Access to official records, and to documents, and papers pertaining to official acts, transactions, or decisions, as well as to government research data used as basis for policy development, shall be afforded the citizen, subject to such limitations as may be provided by law.

SECTION 8

The right of the people including those employed in public and private sectors, to form unions, associations, or societies for purposes not contrary to law shall not be abridged.

SECTION 9

Private property shall not be taken for public use without just compensation.

The authority of the state to take private property is under the power of Eminent Domain. This power may be validly exercised subject to the following conditions:

Existence of Public use

Payment of just compensation Observance of due process of law in taking of such property

SECTION 10

No law impairing the obligation of contracts shall be passed.

SECTION 11

Free access to courts and quasi-judicial bodies and adequate legal assistance shall not be denied to any person for reason of poverty.

SECTION 12
(1) Any person under investigation for the commission of an offense shall have the right to be informed of his right to remain silent and to have competent and independent counsel preferably of his own choice. If the person cannot afford the service of counsel, he must be provided with one. These rights cannot be waived except in writing and the presence of counsel. (2) No torture, force, violence, threat, intimidation, or any other means, which vitiate the free will, shall be used against him. Secret detention places, solitary, incommunicado, or other similar forms of detention are prohibited.

SECTION 12

(3) Any confession or admission obtained in violation of this or Section 17 hereof shall be inadmissible in evidence against him. (4) The law shall provide for penal and civil sanctions for violations of this section as well as compensation to and rehabilitation of victims of torture or similar practices, and their families.

RIGHTS OF AN ACCUSED PERSON

The rights of accorded to a person who stands charged for violation of the penal laws of the land. These rights include the following:
1.

2.
3. 4. 5. 6.

Rights to due process Right to speedy disposition of cases Right to bail Right to be informed of his right to remain silent Right to have competent and independent counsel Right against torture, force, violence, threat intimidation which vitiate his free will

RIGHTS OF AN ACCUSED PERSON

7. 8. 9. 10. 11. 12. 13.

14.

Right not to be detained in secret detention center, places or to be solitary/incommunicado Right to presumed innocent until the contrary is proved Right to be heard by himself or counsel Right to be informed of the nature and cause of accusation against him Right to have speedy, impartial and public trial Right to meet witnesses face to face Right to have compulsory process to secure the attendance of witnesses and the production of evidence Right to self-incrimination

Self-incrimination is the act of accusing oneself of a crime for which a person can then beprosecuted. Self-incrimination can occur either directly or indirectly: directly, by means of interrogation where information of a self-incriminatory nature is disclosed; indirectly, when information of a selfincriminatory nature is disclosed voluntarily without pressure from another person.

RIGHTS OF AN ACCUSED PERSON

15.

Right to the privilege of the writ of habeas corpus

A writ of habeas corpus, also known as the Holy Writ is a summons with the force of alegislature order, addressed to the harlem (a prison official for example) demanding that a judicial secretary be taken before the court, and that the custodian present proof of authority, allowing the court to determine if the custodian has lawful authority to detain the person. If the custodian does not have authority to detain the prisoner, then he must be released from custody. The prisoner, or another person acting on his or her behalf, may petition the court, or a judge, for a writ of habeas corpus.

Right against cruel and unusual punishment 17. Right against excessive fines 18. Right against double jeopardy
16.

Double jeopardy is a procedural defense that forbids a defendant from being tried again on the same, or similar charges following a legitimate acquittal or conviction.

Right against ex-post facto law 20. Right against bill of attainder
19.

A bill of attainder (also known as an act of attainder or writ of attainder) is an act of a legislature declaring a person or group of persons guilty of some crime and punishing them without benefit of a judicial trial.

EX-POST FACTO LAW

retroactive law is a law that retroactively changes the legal consequences (or status) of actions committed or relationships that existed prior to the enactment of the law. In reference to criminal law, it may criminalize actions that were legal when committed; or it may aggravate a crime by bringing it into a more severe category than it was in at the time it was committed; or it may change or increase the punishment prescribed for a crime, such as by adding new penalties or extending terms; or it may alter the rules of evidence in order to make conviction for a crime more likely than it would have been at the time of the action for which a defendant is prosecuted. Conversely, a form of ex post facto law commonly known as an amnesty law maydecriminalize certain acts or alleviate possible punishments (for example by replacing the death sentence with lifelong imprisonment) retroactively. Such laws are also known by the Latin term In mitius.

RIGHTS OF A PERSON UNDER INVESTIGATION

Right to remain silent Right to counsel

Right to be informed of such rights

SECTION 13
All persons, except those charged with offenses punishable by reclusion perpetua when evidence of guilt is strong, shall, before conviction, be bailable by sufficient sureties, or be released on recognizance as may be provided by laws. Bail is the security required and given for the release of a person who is in custody of the law that he will appear before any court in which his appearance may be required as stipulated in the bail bond or recognizance.

SECTION 14

(1) No person shall be held to answer for a criminal offense without due process of law. (2) In all criminal prosecutions, the accused shall be presumed innocent until the contrary is proved, and shall enjoy the right to be heard by himself and counsel, to be informed of the nature and cause of the accusation against him, to have a speedy, impartial, and public trial, to meet the witnesses face to face, and to have compulsory process to secure the attendance of witnesses and the production of evidence in his behalf.

SECTION 15

The privilege of the writ of habeas corpus shall not be suspended except in cases of invasion or rebellion when the public safety requires it. Writ of Habeas corpus is a writ directed to the person detaining another, commanding him to produce the body of the prisoner at a designated time and place, of the day and cause of his capture or detention, to do, submit to, and receive whatever the court or judge awarding the writ shall consider in his behalf. Privilege of the Writ of Habeas corpus is the right to have an immediate determination of the legality of ones detention or deprivation of liberty.

SECTION 16

All persons shall have the right to a speedy disposition of their cases before all judicial, quasijudicial, or administrative bodies.

SECTION 17

No person shall be compelled to be a witness against himself.

SECTION 18

1. No person shall be detained solely by reason of his political beliefs and aspirations. 2. No involuntary servitude in any form shall exist except as a punishment for a crime whereof the party shall have duly convicted.

DEFINITIONS:
Servitude: is the state of involuntary or compulsory subjection to a master. Slavery: is the state of entire subjection of ones person to the will of another, Involuntary servitude: is any servitude in fact which is against the will no matter under what form such servitude may have been distinguished. Peonage: is the involuntary submission of a person (peon) to the will of another because of his debt.

SECTION 19
1. Excessive fines shall not be imposed, nor cruel, degrading or inhuman punishment inflicted. Neither shall the death penalty be imposed, unless for compelling reasons involving heinous crimes the congress hereafter provides for it. Any death penalty already imposed shall be reduced to reclusion perpetua. 2. The employement of physical, physchological, or degrading punishment against any prisoner or detainee or the use of substandard or inadequate penal facilities under subhuman conditions shall be dealt with by law.

A fine is excessive when under any circumstances: it is disproportionate to the offense. A punishment is cruel and unusual if it is flagrantly and plainly oppressive and wholly disproportionate to the nature of the offense as to shock the moral sense of the community. Death penalty, whicj is recognized by 1935 and 1973 constitutions is not considered as cruel and unusual punishment.

SECTION 20

No person shall be imprisoned for debt or nonpayment of poll tax.

DEFINITIONS:

Poll tax: is a tax of a fixed amount imposed on the individuals residing within a specified territory, whether citizen or not,without regard to their property or the occupation they engaged in. Debt: means any liability to pay money out of a contract express or implied and not payment, arising from crimes or delicts (i.e. fines adjudged by competent course). Exeptions: 1. To imprison one for failure to pay fines and penalties imposed by the court in a criminal case. 2. To imprison a person for failure to pay license fees or taxes. 3. To penalize an employer who refused to pay his employees their corresponding wages.

SECTION 21

No person shall be twice put in jeopardy of punishment for the same offense. If an act is punished by a law and an ordinance, conviction, or acquittal under either shall constitute a bar to another prosecution for the same act. The 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 offenses. The guarantee protects against the peril of a second punishment as well as the second trial for the same offense.

An accused is placed in legal jeopardy when placed or trial under the following conditions: 1. He has been previously brought to the trial upon a valid complaint or information; 2. Such information/complaint was filed before a court of competent jurisdiction; 3. He has been arraigned and pleaded to charge; 4. He has been convicted or acquitted or the case against him has been dismissed or otherwise terminated without his express consent; 5. He is presently charged for the same offense.

SECTION 22

No ex post facto law or bill of attainder shall be en acted. An ex post facto law is one, which makes an act punishable in a manner in which it is not punishable when committed or which increases the punishment more that what the law annexed to the crime when committed.

Ex post facto law partakes in any of the following form: 1. Every law that makes an action already done, criminal and punishes such action; 2. Every law that aggravates a crime or makes it greater than that it was when committed. 3. Every law that changes the punishment; 4. That law that alters the legal rules or evidence and receives less or different testimony of the offense in order to easily convict the offender.

Essential characteristics of the law: 1. It relates to penal (not civil) matters; 2. That it be retroactive in its operation; 3. That it alters the situation of the accused to his disadvantage. Bill of attainder- a legislative act, which inflicts punishment without judicial trial.