FACTS: Spouses Edmundo and Carmelita Balderama filed a letter-complaint against respondent Judge Adolfo Alagar of the RTC, San Fernando City, La Union with the Office of the Court administrator for partiality and bias and impropriety.
It appears that the spouses are the accused in a criminal case for estafa through falsification of public documents pending before Judge Alagar. Complaints charged Judge Alagar for impropriety as he was seen fraternizing with private complaints in the criminal case, spouses Jamie and Bernerda Ader. They thus filed a motion for inhibition against Judge Alagar which was denied.
Judge Alagar on the other hand explained that it was his driver who drove the judge’s car, who offered, on at least 2 occasions, the spouses Ader a ride to the court wherein they had a hearing before the sala of respondent judge. Judge Alagar further explained that he was not personally aware of what his driver did and only found out later upon investigation.
ISSUE: Whether or not there is reasonable ground to believe that respondent Judge transgressed the high standard of moral ethics mandated of magistrates by allowing himself to be seen at the residence of the private complainants.
HELD: Yes. What has not been clearly proven, however, was whether or not Judge Alagar had knowledge of his driver’s actuations, and also whether or not he ever personally went to the spouses Ader’s residence or fetched them for a hearing anytime. Notwithstanding this lack of direct proof of fraternizing with the party litigants in a case pending before his sala, this court holds that Judge Alagar should have nonetheless have exercised a greater degree of diligence in the supervision of his driver.
Canon 2 of the Code of Judicial Conduct mandates that a judge should avoid not only actual acts of impropriety, but equally also the appearance thereof in all his activities, whether inside or outside the courtroom. A judge’s official conduct should be free from the appearance of impropriety; and his personal behavior, not only in the bench and in the performance of official duties, but also in his everyday life should be beyond reproach.
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