SC reverses ruling on man caught with knife during 2018 polls
While carrying firearms or deadly weapons is prohibited during the election period, knives and other bladed instruments are banned only when brought inside or within 100 meters from a polling precinct, the Supreme Court said.
The high tribunal’s Third Division made the clarification in granting the motion for reconsideration filed by Philip Miranda, who was found guilty of violating election rules for carrying a kitchen knife without a permit during the barangay and Sangguniang Kabataan elections held in May 2018.
The resolution was issued in October last year, although it was released only on Tuesday.
‘No proof’
The high court’s latest ruling on the case is a reversal of its own 2022 resolution, which initially affirmed the 2019 decision of the Muntinlupa Regional Trial Court and the 2021 decision of the Court of Appeals that both convicted Miranda of the election offense.
In 2018, Miranda, a Muntinlupa City resident, was arrested and charged with violating Sec. 261 (p) of the Omnibus Election Code, for wielding a 13-inch kitchen knife without authorization from the Commission on Elections (Comelec).
But in its latest resolution, the high court cleared Miranda of the offense because there was “no proof” that the area where he was carrying the knife was inside a polling place or within a radius of 100 meters.
It also noted that the ban on deadly weapons, including knives, is not covered by the prohibition on firearms in the Omnibus Election Code and Section 32 of Republic Act No. 7166, or the Synchronized Election Law of 1991.
Under the law, firearms, even when covered by a permit or license, cannot be carried outside one’s residence or place of business during the entire election period, unless authorized by Comelec.
