📷 eLegal Philippines
A Calamba court judge makes a final farewell to her robes following a Supreme Court decision which found her guilty beyond reasonable doubt over cases embarking on what looks more like another ghost employee fiasco.
In its 42-page decision, the Supreme Court En Banc ordered the dismissal and disbarment of Calamba City Vice Executive Judge Sharon Alamada-Magayanes who was found guilty for a long list of cases including falsification of official documents, serious dishonesty, gross misconduct, commission of crimes involving moral turpitude and violations of the New Code of Judicial Conduct.
Court records showed that Magayanes herself admitted that the signatures in the payroll registers of the City Government of Calamba, which assigned a driver to her office are hers – when in fact the unnamed local government personnel was found to have resigned and no longer reporting for work.
The court also found that Magayanes was in possession of the resigned driver’s ATM cash card where the local government deposits his salary. Records also showed that funds were withdrawn from September 2020 until July 2021.
In dismissing the judge, the Court en banc ruled that her actions demonstrated her moral depravity and fell short of the standards of a magistrate of the law.
Magayanes’ false certifications and misappropriation of her staff’s salaries also constitute gross misconduct and serious dishonesty, which are both considered serious offenses under the Code of Professional Responsibility and Accountability.
The Court said the judge’s acts did not only affect the image of the judiciary but also put her moral character in serious doubt and rendered her unfit to continue in the practice of law.
Amid multiple infractions, the court also ruled to disbar her.
Aside from Magayanes, guilty verdicts were also handed down to Rachel Worwor-Miguel (Clerk of Court III) and Beverly A. De Jesus (Court Stenographer II) for conniving with the judge.
Interestingly, the SC does not include jail time for the fired judge. (ANGEL F. JOSE)
