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Office of the Court Administrator vs. Reyes [SEPARATE CONCURRING OPINION, LEONEN, J.]

OFFICE OF THE COURT ADMINISTRATOR, COMPLAINANT, VS. JUDGE EDRALIN C. REYES, PRESIDING JUDGE, BRANCH 43, REGIONAL TRIAL COURT, ROXAS CITY, ORIENTAL MINDORO, RESPONDENT.

A.M. No. RTJ-20-2579 [Formerly A.M. No. 20-06-75 RTC] | 2023-10-10

SEPARATE CONCURRING OPINION

LEONEN, J.:

I concur. Judge Edralin C. Reyes should be dismissed from service for soliciting bribes from lawyers, litigants, and government officials[1]—acts tantamount to gross misconduct—and be liable for simple misconduct by failing to keep a proper record- and evidence-keeping system in his courts.[2]

To weaken the charge of gross misconduct against him, Judge Reyes raises the alleged violation of his constitutional right to privacy when his personal communications were retrieved from a laptop assigned to him by this Court and used in evidence against him.[3]

Undoubtably, the right to privacy is...