CA clears Sulpicio Lines exec in 2008 Princess of the Stars tragedy

[ghosthunter]

CA clears Sulpicio Lines exec in 2008 Princess of the Stars tragedy
April 1, 2013 12:47pm


The Court of Appeals has junked a criminal case against an official of the Sulpicio Lines Inc. (SLI) in connection with the 2008 sinking of MV Pricess of the Star off Romblon which left over 300 dead and hundreds others missing.

In a 33-page decision, the appeals court granted the petition for certiorari filed by accused Edgar Go, Sulpicio Lines vice president for administration, that sought to question the criminal charges filed against him by the Department of Justice with a Manila court.

The CA invalidated a June 22, 2009 DOJ resolution finding probable cause to charge Go with reckless imprudence resulting in multiple homicide, damage to property and serious physical injury. The appeal court also voided the subsequent resolutions of the DOJ, dated March 22 and June 8, 2010, that denied both Go's petition for review and motion for reconsideration.

As a result of its decision, the CA asked the Manila Manila Regional Trial Court Branch 5 to no longer entertain the criminal case filed with it by the DOJ against the shipping line official.

The CA said the DOJ "erred" when it held Go liable for not ordering the ill-fayed ship seek shelter at the height of Typhoon Frank's rampage in 2008.

The appeals court said no evidence was presented to show that Go even had the authority to decide or give orders on whether or not their vessel should seek shelter or push through with a voyage.

The CA stressed that as a ranking official for administration, Go's main responsibility was merely to supervise officials and personnel of the shipping line.

The 300-ton vessel left Manila at the height of Typhoon Frank. It slammed into the wrath of the typhoon in the vicinity of Romblon province while on its way to Cebu in the morning of June 21, 2008.

At the time of the incident, Princess was carrying more than 800 passengers and crew. The SLI said 32 survived the tragedy while 312 bodies were later recovered, while others were believed to have been trapped inside.

Retrieval operations were halted following the discovery that the ship carried a cargo of 10,000 kilograms of pesticide endosulfan. — Marc Merueñas/RSJ, GMA News

source: CA clears Sulpicio Lines exec in 2008 Princess of the Stars tragedy | News | GMA News Online

[niky]

Appeals court clears Sulpicio Lines exec of liability over ship sinking | Inquirer News

In its ruling, the appeals court said the Department of Justice erred when it blamed Go for the sinking of the ship.

It recalled that a Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) boarding officer had inspected the ill-fated ship prior to its departure. After checking that the documents were in place, the officer informed the ship’s captain, Florencio Marimon, that there would be a storm in the area where they would pass. When Marimon presented an alternate route, the Coast Guard approved it and cleared the ship for departure.

“It is clear that petitioner (Go) did not have the authority to clear the departure of the vessel and he did not participate in the decision concerning said departure. There is therefore no legal or factual basis for his indictment,” the appeals court said.

The appeals court added that the DoJ also erred when Go was held liable for failure to instruct the vessel to seek shelter or drop anchor in the face of the storm.

“There is no shred of evidence from which such power to control or authority to decide and direct can be drawn or inferred. What the evidence shows is that petitioner’s duty was to supervise personnel who perform liaison work with government agencies for compliance with statutory permits, certificates and franchises,” the appeals court said.

But the appeals court clarified that despite the dismissal of case against Go, it does not absolve Sulpicio Lines from any form of liability.

Parang nga anlabo. It's like blaming the HR officer for the shortcoming of security personnel. Or blaming the President for the Luneta massacre...

[lowslowbenz]

Cyndi Lauper: MONEY CHANGES EVERYTHING

[wowiesy]

Cyndi Lauper: MONEY CHANGES EVERYTHING

could be...

CA pa lang yan di ba... malamang sa malamang yan iaakyat pa ng SC yan.. then may MR pa... by the time this is resolved with finality... nakaupo na yung kasunod ni PNoy...

Parang nga anlabo. It's like blaming the HR officer for the shortcoming of security personnel. Or blaming the President for the Luneta massacre...

in a way.. command responsibility... but.. in the same analogy... swerte lang ni PNoy may immunity from suit ang presidente.. kung hindi sya din dapat managot sa nabanggit na Luneta hostage tragedy.. at ilan pang man made calamities recently...

[Monseratto]

If the CA decides against the government, tapos na ata ung laban...unless the CA decided againt Sulpicio and they can elevate it to the next level.

[niky]

The question of command responsibility will be whether the storm warning and the decision of the captain reached him before the incident. Definitely the captain was liable, but the ultimate line liability of his superiors depends on how involved in the day-to-day operations they are.

And, of course, the liability of the company itself is still there, since the incident was caused by the decision of one of their employees.

-

RE: Luneta... oh, if only Lim could be held accountable for interfering with a police operation...

[hein]

If the CA decides against the government, tapos na ata ung laban...unless the CA decided againt Sulpicio and they can elevate it to the next level.

CA is the most Corrupt amongst the Judiciary. Daming fixers pwedeng lapitan dyan across the CA buildimg.

[Ry_Tower]

^ Because they knew may SC pa naman daw eh. Sila na lang mag-isip ng tama.