The Quezon City Regional Trial Court Branch 98 has again postponed the arraignment of Vice President Sara Duterte on three counts of grave threats, her lawyer said.
Lawyer Paul Lawrence Lim said the court did not proceed with the arraignment because Duterte’s camp has a pending motion for partial reconsideration ad cautelam. The motion concerns the court’s decision to deny Duterte’s request for the presiding judge to inhibit, or withdraw, from handling the case.
Duterte’s legal team also has a petition for certiorari pending before the Supreme Court, Lim said.
The presiding judge decided to study the pending motions before moving forward with the arraignment, according to Lim. The court has not announced a new date for Duterte’s arraignment.
The case involves three counts of grave threats. The trial court previously rejected Duterte’s request for the presiding judge to step aside. Her camp’s motion for partial reconsideration asks the court to revisit that ruling, while the separate petition for certiorari remains pending before the Supreme Court.
The arraignment was postponed while the court considers those filings. Lim said the judge wanted to review the pending motions before proceeding with the formal reading of the charges. No replacement date was provided following the hearing.
The motion was filed ad cautelam and seeks partial reconsideration of the ruling on the request for the judge’s inhibition. Separately, the certiorari petition is before the Supreme Court. Both filings remain pending, and no arraignment date has been announced.
After the hearing, Duterte addressed her supporters and thanked them for their continued trust in her. She also thanked her lawyers in the grave threats cases for their diligent work.
The court has yet to set another date for the arraignment. Until then, the proceeding remains postponed while the pending motions are considered.
