CHR steps into Ivan Padilla shootout case

The Commission on Human Rights (CHR) on Wednesday said it would investigate the circumstances surrounding the death of suspected carjack ring leader Ivan Padilla after a shootout with Makati police early this week. In a phone interview with GMANews.TV, lawyer Carmelita Rosete, CHR-National Capital Region chief for protection and monitoring, called on Padilla's family to file a complaint if they see irregularities on how the suspected carjack leader died last Monday. Padilla and companion Mark Inducil were reported to have engaged policemen in a shootout early Monday. Padilla later died from serious gunshot wounds, while Inducil was arrested. Rosete said that while awaiting any move from Padilla's relatives, the CHR on its own would already be holding a "motu proprio" investigation on the shootout. She said she would be recommending CHR-NCR director Gilbert Boiser to order the probe. "Kung hindi magfa-file ng complaint ang family ni Mr. Padilla, puwede na kaming mag-initial investigation kahit bukas," Rosete told GMANews.TV over the phone. (Even without a complaint from the family, we can start investigating the incident by Thursday.) The CHR official said among the aspects of the incident the agency would look into would be the "time gap" between the shootout and the time he was rushed to the hospital. Overkill or not? Earlier reports said Padilla was declared dead on arrival at the Ospital ng Makati before 6 a.m. of Monday. However, moments before he was rushed there, a seriously wounded Padilla was still seen being interviewed by a television crew while slumped at the back of a police mobile. Families have been quoted in reports as complaining about how long it took the police to rush Padilla to a hospital for treatment. In their defense, policemen who responded to the incident said they wanted to clear the area first and make sure the suspect poses no threat to civilians, before rushing him to a hospital. Rosete refused to give a comment based on the TV footage of Padilla's final interview, lest the CHR be accused of casting "pre-judgment" to the incident. But Rosete said they would also look into the possibility that the shooting incident was a case of rub-out and not a shootout. "We also want to know if there was excessive use of force. Was it an overkill or not?" Rosete said. Rosete said she received information that Padilla refused to alight from his vehicle when policemen apprehended him, forcing the latter to fire shots while the suspect was still inside his car. She said they would be coordinating with police investigators to piece together what happened on the day of the shootout. "But it doesn't follow that our results will be similar to that of the police. We will be working backwards and trace the root of it," Rosete said. Not the first time This will not be the first time that the CHR will be looking into 'shootouts' between suspected criminal elements and the police. In January, the CHR recommended the filing of criminal and administrative charges against 22 policemen implicated in the December 2008 Parañaque shootout that claimed the lives of 16 people, including a seven-year old girl. Early last year, the CHR also stepped into the so-called "NIA Road shootout" that happened on Feb. 17, 2009 between Quezon City policemen and three suspected car thieves along EDSA corner NIA Road. The shooting incident, which the police claimed was a legitimate encounter, gained public attention after it was caught on video by an ABS-CBN news team. The footage showed a policeman in plainclothes opening the door of the suspects’ car and firing inside the vehicle. He and another man then dragged one of the suspects out of the car, laid him on the ground, and shot him. A number of QC policemen implicated in the controversy were suspended by the National Police Commission due to the incident. The Court of Appeals later nullified the suspension order since no formal charge was lodged against them at the time. Rosete said the resolution for the rights body's separate case investigation on the NIA Road shooting is still being drafted, but assured it was already "the last stage" before the CHR's recommendations would be made public. — RSJ/LBG, GMANews.TV