Sandiganbayan denies house-arrest request of former DPWH official in flood-control graft case
The Sandiganbayan rejected former DPWH official Juliet Calvo's plea for house arrest, allowing only a 30-day stay at the Philippine Heart Center before moving her to the Quezon City Jail Female Dormitory.
Former DPWH official Juliet Calvo petitioned the Sandiganbayan Sixth Division for house arrest, citing severe mobility and speech difficulties after a stroke that landed her in the Philippine Heart Center on August 5. The anti-graft court denied the request, permitting her to remain in the hospital for only 30 days before she must be transferred to the female dormitory of Quezon City Jail. Calvo is charged with malversation in connection with a questionable flood-control project in Oriental Mindoro, a scandal that also involves ex-lawmaker Zaldy Co, currently considered a fugitive and alleged mastermind of the multi-billion-peso scheme.
The decision underscores the court's strict stance on humanitarian considerations in high-profile corruption cases. Calvo's legal team had argued that her health condition warranted a less restrictive form of detention. The ruling will see her continue to face trial while incarcerated.
Why it matters
The ruling highlights the limits of health-based detention pleas in a major corruption investigation.
How the sides frame it
MODERATE AGREEMENTBoth camps report the Sandiganbayan's denial of house arrest for Juliet Calvo, but center coverage adds an evaluative comment about the court's strict stance on humanitarian considerations, whereas left-leaning coverage sticks to factual details.
LEFT
Left-leaning coverage presents the denial as a factual outcome, noting Calvo's stroke and the court's reliance on jail facilities for her care.
CENTER
Center coverage frames the denial as evidence of the court's strict stance on humanitarian considerations in high-profile corruption cases.
The left emphasises
- Calvo cannot be placed under house arrest despite her stroke
- counsel cited need for family-provided care and rising medical bills
- court relied on the Quezon City Jail-Female Dormitory’s capacity for nursing and medication
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