JUDGE ANDREW U. BARCENA, Complainant, vs. CLERK OF COURT II THELMA S. ABADILLA, CASHIER I ROSELLER O. ISRAEL, CLERK IV ULYSSES D. DUPAYA, CLERK III ROY C. ROSALES and JUNIOR PROCESS SERVER JAMES D. LORILLA, all of the Office of the Clerk of Court, Municipal Trial Court, Lal-lo, Cagayan, Respondents.
January 24, 2017
A.M. No. P-16-3564
Facts:
Before the Court is an administrative complaint filed by Judge Andrew U. Barcena (Judge Barcena), Presiding Judge, Branch 1, Municipal Trial Court (MTC), Lal-lo, Cagayan, against James D. Lorilla, Junior Process Server (Lorilla); Ulysses Dupaya, Clerk IV (Dupaya),• Roy Rosales, Clerk III (Rosales); Roseller Israel, Cashier I (Israel); and Thelma S. Abadilla (Abadilla), Clerk of Court II, all of the Office of the Clerk of Court, MTC (OCC), for gross insubordination and gross disrespect to a judicial authority. Respondents, as alleged by the complainant, were constantly disobeying his instructions with regard to the respondents’ demand of signing their respective accomplished Performance Evaluation Forms (PEFs) for the period January-June 2010.
On July 14, 2010, at about 12:00 o'clock noon instead of complying with the complainant’s instruction, Mr. Lorilla suddenly flew into rage, pointed his forefinger right at his face and angrily shouted, "Bakit ayaw mong pirmahan ang rating namin! Bakit si Thelma ang tinatawag mo eh nandito naman ako! Hindi ako natatakot sayo!" (Why do you refuse to sign our ratings! Why do you want to call for Thelma when I am already here! I am not afraid of you!); Judge Barcena was shocked by the vicious tirade and menacing demeanor of Mr. Lorilla but he just ignored him. He repeated his instruction for him to call Ms. Abadilla and then headed towards his chamber as I wanted to avoid the menacing and adversarial demeanor of Mr. Lorilla;As he turned my back from Mr. Lorilla, he suddenly attacked Judge Barcena by fiercely grabbing and strangling his neck with Lorilla right arm while his left arm strongly clamped my body, leaving me choking and totally immobilized;Judge Barcena was losing breath and consciousness by the time Mr. Lorilla was extricated from him. It took some time to catch his breath and breathe normally. When he finally regained his normal breathing and composure from the onslaught of Mr. Lorilla, his entire neck was in deep pain. He also found a wound just below his left ear.
The respondents contend that, Judge Barcena lambasted Lorilla with insidious as well as insulting words and he shouted repeatedly, at the top his lungs, the words "Punyeta kyo, kinukulit nyo ako! Tawagin nyo nga ang punyetang Thelmang yan!" Meaning "You bastard, you keep on pestering me. You call that bitch Thelma" while finger-pointing Lorilla;
Afterwhich, Judge Barcena approached Lorilla and kept on finger pointing him while uttering defamatory and threatening words;Then all of a sudden, Judge Barcena strongly pushed him away which caused Lorilla to lose his balance;Considering He was about to fall down, he held the hands of Judge Barcena which caused both of them to fall down; Judge Barcena was on top of him;As I thought that he had a clear intention of harming Lorilla, He tried to protect himself as he was grappling him; They were even able to stand-up while grappling with each other;During the struggle, Lorilla might have accidentally and inadvertently scratch his watch against the neck of Judge Barcena but he must categorically state that he was not holding a weapon or any sharp object during the scuffle.
In its Report, 15 dated March 26, 2012, the Office of the Court Administrator (OCA) recommended that the evaluation of the administrative complaint be held in abeyance until after the final resolution of the criminal case for frustrated murder filed by Judge Barcena against the respondents. It was also recommended that Lorilla be suspended until further orders from the Court due to the strained relationship.
Thus, upon the recommendation of the OCA, the Court, in its Resolution,20 dated June 26, 2013, referred the investigation of the incident to Judge Conrado T. Tabaco (Investigating Judge) of RTC-Branch 9.
The Findings of the Investigating Judge
In his Report,21 dated May 15, 2015, the Investigating Judge found no basis to hold Abadilla, Dupaya, Rosales, and Israel administratively liable for gross insubordination and gross disrespect to judicial authority as the theory of conspiracy had not been established and there was no showing that they disobeyed an order or directive from Judge Barcena. With respect to Lorilla, however, the Investigating Judge found that his act constituted grave misconduct, having deviated from the prescribed norms of behavior demanded of court personnel, and recommended that he be suspended for a period of six (6) months.
The Report and Recommendation of the OCA
In its Memorandum, 22 dated August 17, 2016, the OCA found Lorilla liable for grave misconduct but dismissed the complaint against Abadilla, Dupaya and Israel for insufficiency of evidence. The OCA was of the view that the complainant failed to prove the existence of conspiracy among the respondents.
Issue:
Whether or not the respondents are guilty of Grave Misconduct?
Held:
Yes. Time and again, the Court has stressed that fighting or misunderstanding is a disgraceful sight reflecting adversely on the good image of the Judiciary. 34 It displays a cavalier attitude towards the seriousness and dignity with which court business should be treated. 35 Professionalism, respect for the rights of others, good manners, and right conduct are expected of all judicial officers and employees. 36 Their behavior and actuations must be characterized by propriety and decorum and should at all times embody prudence, restraint, courtesy and dignity.37
Under Section 46 (A) (3), Rule 10 of the Revised Rules on Administrative Cases in Civil Service, grave misconduct is a grave offense punishable by dismissal even for the first offense. In the present case, the Court notes that this is not the first time that Lorilla was found administratively liable. In the case of Aquino v. Israel, 38 he was found liable for misconduct and fined in the amount of ₱l,000.00 for punching a co-employee. He seemed undeterred despite the earlier warning that any repetition of similar infraction would be dealt with more severely. Given the foregoing, the recommended penalty of suspension for a period of two years is insufficient. The Court imposes upon him the supreme penalty of dismissal. He has no place in the Judiciary.
On a final note, the Court is not unaware of the heavy case load of the first level courts but this incident could have been avoided if proper communication was made to each and every office under Judge Barcena's supervision. Judge Barcena is advised to implement a more efficient and systematic approach in the supervision of employees within his administrative area like keeping a schedule of signing documents. He is also reminded that courtesy is likewise expected of him, in his conduct and language, towards his subordinates. Needless to state, the use of vile and demeaning words should be completely avoided.
The Supreme Court, ruled that James D. Lorilla, Junior Process Server, Office of the Clerk of Court, Municipal Trial Court, Lal-lo, Cagayan, GUILTY of Grave Misconduct, the Court hereby orders his DISMISSAL from the service with FORFEITURE of all benefits, except accrued leave credits, and with prejudice to reemployment in any branch or instrumentality of the government including government-owned or controlled corporations.
The complaint against Thelma S. Abadilla, Clerk of Court II; Roseller O. Israel, Cashier I; Ulysses D. Dupaya, Clerk IV; and Roy Rosales, Clerk III, all of Office of the Clerk of Court, Municipal Trial Court, Lal-lo, Cagayan, is DISMISSED for insufficiency of evidence.
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