Rule 114 Bail

RULE 114
BAIL
Section 1. Bail defined.
Bail -- the security given for the release of a person in

custody of the law, furnished by him or a bondsman,
conditioned upon his appearance before any court as
required under the conditions specified by the rule (Sec.
1, Rule 114).
A person is in the custody of law when he has been either
arrested or otherwise deprived of his freedom or when he has
voluntarily submitted himself to the jurisdiction of the court by
surrendering to the proper authorities.
All persons, except those charged with offenses punishable

by reclusion perpetua when evidence of guilt is strong,
shall, before conviction, be bailable by sufficient sureties, or be
released on recognizance as may be provided by law (Section 13,
Article III, 1987 Constitution).
Forms of bail:
1. corporate surety
2. property bond
3. cash deposit
4. recognizance
Section 2. Conditions of the bail; requirements.
CONDITIONS OF BAIL
1. The undertaking shall be effective upon approval, and, unless
cancelled, shall remain in force at all stages of the case until promulgation of
the judgment of the RTC, irrespective of whether the case was originally
filed in or appealed to it;
2. The accused shall appear before the proper courts whenever so
required by the court or these Rules;
3. The failure of the accused to appear at the trial without justification
despite due notice shall be deemed a waiver of his right to be present
thereat. In such case, the trial may proceed in absentia;
4. The bondsman shall surrender the accused to court for execution of
the final judgment.
No release or transfer except on court order or bail.
No person under detention by legal process shall be
released or transferred except upon order of the court or
when he is admitted to bail (Sec. 3).
Section 4. Bail, a matter of right; exception.
When a matter of right:

1. before or after conviction in the lower courts;
AND
2. before conviction by the RTC, EXCEPT when
the imposable penalty is death, reclusion perpetua
or life imprisonment and evidence of guilt is
strong.
In instances where bail is a matter of right and the
bail to be granted is based on the recommendation
of the prosecution as stated in the information or
complaint, a hearing is NOT necessary.
Section 5. Bail, when discretionary. –
RULES ON AVAILABILITY OF BAIL
1. Regardless of stage of the criminal prosecution, no bail shall be
allowed if the accused is charged with a capital offense or an offense
punishable by reclusion perpetua AND the evidence of guilt is strong (Sec.
7);
2. Before and after conviction by the MTC, Municipal Trial Court or
MCTC, bail is a matter of right (Sec.4).
3. Before conviction by the RTC whether in the exercise of its original or
appellate jurisdiction, bail is a matter of right. (Sec.4)
4. Upon conviction by the RTC of an offense not punishable by death,
reclusion perpetua or life imprisonment, admission to bail is discretionary
(Sec. 5);
5. After conviction by the RTC wherein a penalty of imprisonment
exceeding 6 but not more than 20 years is imposed, and not one of the
circumstances below is present and proved, bail is a matter of
discretion (Sec.5).
a) Recidivism, quasi-recidivism or habitual delinquency or commission
of crime aggravated by the circumstances of reiteration.
b) Previous escape from legal confinement, evasion of sentence or
violation of the conditions of bail without valid justification.
c) Commission of the offense while on probation, parole or under
conditional pardon
d) Circumstance of the accused or his case indicates the probability of
flight if released on bail
e) Undue risk of commission of another crime by the accused during
pendency of appeal.
6. After conviction by the RTC imposing a penalty of
imprisonment exceeding 6 years but not more than 20 years and
any of the circumstance enumerated above and other similar
circumstance is present and proved, no bail shall be granted
(Sec.5);
7. After judgment has become final unless accused applied for
probation before commencing to serve sentence of penalty and
offense within purview of probation law (Sec. 24).
Section 6. Capital Offense, defined.
Capital Offense – is an offense which, under the law existing at
the time of its commission AND at the time of the application to
be admitted to bail, may be punished with death
Section 7. Capital Offense not bailable.

Capital offense or those punishable by reclusion perpetua, life
imprisonment or death are NOT BAILABLE when evidence of
guilt is strong.
EXCEPTION: If the accused charged with a capital offense is a
minor.
Section 8. Burden of proof in bail application.
The hearing should be summary or otherwise in the discretion of the court but the
right of the prosecution to control the quantum of evidence and the order of
presentation of witnesses must be equated with the purpose of the hearing – to
determine the bailability of the accused.
The burden of proving that the evidence of guilt is strong lies within the
fence of the prosecution. (Comia vs. Antona, 337 SCRA 656)
Evidence of guilt is strong when proof is evident or the presumption of guilt is
strong. The test is NOT whether the evidence establishes guilt beyond reasonable
doubt but rather whether it shows evident guilt or a great presumption of guilt.
Section 9. Amount of bail; guidelines.
FACTORS TO BE CONSIDERED IN FIXING THE REASONABLE AMOUNT OF BAIL
(NOT EXCLUSIVE)
1. Financial ability of the accused to give bail;
2. Nature and circumstances of the offense;
3. Penalty for the offense charged;
4. Character and reputation of the accused;
5. Age and health of the accused;
6. Weight of evidence against the accused;
7. Probability of the accused appearing at the trial;
8. Forfeiture of other bail;
9. The fact that the accused was a fugitive from justice when arrested; and
10. Pendency of other cases when the accused is on bail
Bail must not be in a prohibitory amount. Excessive bail is not to
be required for the purpose of preventing the accused from being
admitted to bail.
Section 11. Property, how posted.
Property Bond – is an undertaking constituted as a lien on the real property

given as security for the amount of the bail (sec11);
It is required that the annotation of a lien on the land records of the property
posted as bail, otherwise the property bail bond shall be cancelled.
Section 12. Qualifications of sureties in property bond.
Philippine residency is required of a property bondsman. The reason
for this is that bondsmen in criminal cases, residing outside of the
Philippines, are not within the reach of the processes of its courts
(Villaseñor vs. Abano, 21 SCRA 312).
The qualification of sureties in a property bond shall be as follows:
(a) Each must be a resident owner of real estate within the Philippines;
(b) Where there is only one surety, his real estate must be worth at least
the amount of the undertaking;
(c) If there are two or more sureties, each may justify in an amount less
than that expressed in the undertaking but the aggregate of the justified
sums must be equivalent to the whole amount of bail demanded.
In all cases, every surety must be worth the amount specified in
his own undertaking over and above all just debts, obligations and
properties exempt from execution.
Section 13. Justification of sureties. — Every surety shall justify
by affidavit taken before the judge that he possesses the
qualifications prescribed in the preceding section. He shall
describe the property given as security, stating the nature of his
title, its encumbrances, the number and amount of other bails
entered into by him and still undischarged, and his other
liabilities. The court may examine the sureties upon oath
concerning their sufficiency in such manner as it may deem
proper. No bail shall be approved unless the surety is qualified.
Section 14. Deposit of cash as bail. — The accused or any person
acting in his behalf may deposit in cash with the nearest collector
or internal revenue or provincial, city, or municipal treasurer the
amount of bail fixed by the court, or recommended by the
prosecutor who investigated or filed the case. Upon submission of
a proper certificate of deposit and a written undertaking showing
compliance with the requirements of section 2 of this Rule, the
accused shall be discharged from custody. The money deposited
shall be considered as bail and applied to the payment of fine and
costs while the excess, if any, shall be returned to the accused or
to whoever made the deposit.
Section 15. Recognizance. — Whenever allowed by law
or these Rules, the court may release a person in custody
to his own recognizance or that of a responsible person.
Section 16. Bail, when not required; reduced bail or recognizance. — No bail shall be
required when the law or these Rules so provide.
When a person has been in custody for a period equal to or more than the possible
maximum imprisonment prescribe for the offense charged, he shall be released immediately,
without prejudice to the continuation of the trial or the proceedings on appeal. If the
maximum penalty to which the accused may be sentenced is destierro, he shall be released
after thirty (30) days of preventive imprisonment.
A person in custody for a period equal to or more than the minimum of the principal penalty
prescribed for the offense charged, without application of the Indeterminate Sentence Law
or any modifying circumstance, shall be released on a reduced bail or on his own
recognizance, at the discretion of the court.
Section 18. Notice of application to prosecutor. — In the
application for bail under section 8 of this Rule, the court must
give reasonable notice of the hearing to the prosecutor or require
him to submit his recommendation. (18a)
Section 19. Release on bail. — The accused must be discharged
upon approval of the bail by the judge with whom it was filed in
accordance with section 17 of this Rule.
Whenever bail is filed with a court other than where the case is
pending, the judge who accepted the bail shall forward it, together
with the order of release and other supporting papers, to the court
where the case is pending, which may, for good reason, require a
different one to be filed.
Section 20. Increase or reduction of bail. — After the accused is admitted to
bail, the court may, upon good cause, either increase or reduce its amount.
When increased, the accused may be committed to custody if he does not
give bail in the increased amount within a reasonable period. An accused
held to answer a criminal charge, who is released without bail upon filing of
the complaint or information, may, at any subsequent stage of the
proceedings and whenever a strong showing of guilt appears to the court, be
required to give bail in the amount fixed, or in lieu thereof, committed to
custody.
Section 21. Forfeiture of bail.
Within 30 days from the failure of the accused to appear in person as

required, the bondsmen must:
a. PRODUCE the body of their principal or give the reason for his non-
production; AND
b. EXPLAIN why the accused did not appear before the court when first
required to do so.
The 30-day period granted to the bondsmen to comply with the two
requisites for the lifting of the order of forfeiture cannot be shortened by the
court but may be extended for good cause shown.
Section 22. Cancellation of bail. — Upon application of the
bondsmen, with due notice to the prosecutor, the bail may be
cancelled upon surrender of the accused or proof of his death.
The bail shall be deemed automatically cancelled upon acquittal

of the accused, dismissal of the case, or execution of the
judgment of conviction.
In all instances, the cancellation shall be without prejudice to any

liability on the bond.
Section 23. Arrest of accused out on bail. — For the
purpose of surrendering the accused, the bondsmen may
arrest him or, upon written authority endorsed on a
certified copy of the undertaking, cause him to be
arrested by a police officer or any other person of
suitable age and discretion.
An accused released on bail may be re-arrested without

the necessity of a warrant if he attempts to depart from
the Philippines without permission of the court where the
case is pending.
Section 24. No bail after final judgment; exception. — No bail
shall be allowed after the judgment of conviction has become
final. If before such finality, the accused has applies for probation,
he may be allowed temporary liberty under his bail. When no bail
was filed or the accused is incapable of filing one, the court may
allow his release on recognizance to the custody of a responsible
member of the community. In no case shall bail be allowed after
the accused has commenced to serve sentence.
Section 25. Court supervision of detainees.
Section 26. Bail not a bar to objections on illegal arrest, lack of or
irregular preliminary investigation. — An application for or
admission to bail shall not bar the accused from challenging the
validity of his arrest or the legality of the warrant issued therefor,
or from assailing the regularity or questioning the absence of a
preliminary investigation of the charge against him, provided that
he raises them before entering his plea. The court shall resolve
the matter as early as practicable but not later than the start of
the trial of the case.

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RULE 114

Bail -- the security given for the release of a person in

All persons, except those charged with offenses punishable

When a matter of right:

Section 7. Capital Offense not bailable.

Property Bond – is an undertaking constituted as a lien on the real property

Within 30 days from the failure of the accused to appear in person as

The bail shall be deemed automatically cancelled upon acquittal

In all instances, the cancellation shall be without prejudice to any

An accused released on bail may be re-arrested without

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