DISPOSITIVE:
ACCORDINGLY, the Petitions for Certiorari, docketed as G.R. No.
232968 and G.R. No. 232974, are DISMISSED on the ground of mootness.
On the other hand, the Petition for Certiorari filed by Arthur Cua Yap
in G.R. Nos. 238584-87 is GRANTED. Accordingly, the Resolutions dated
November 28, 2017 and March 1, 2018 of the Sandiganbayan (SBN) in SB-
17-CRM-1510-1545 are REVERSED and SET ASIDE. Yap’s Motion for
Partial Reconsideration (Re: Resolution dated 15 August 201 7) with Motion
to Quash Informations is GRANTED and the cases against him before the
Sandiganbayan, docketed as SB-l 7-CRM-1526, SB-17-CRM-1527, SB-l 7-
CRM-1531, and SB-l 7-CRM-1544, are hereby DISMISSED.
SUBJECTS/DOCTRINES/DIGEST:
Corollary thereto, it is doctrinal that the burden of proof to justify the
delay shifts depending on when the right was invoked. The defense bears the
burden if the right was invoked within the periods prescribed by this Comi,
the Rules of Court, or the 0MB for the conduct of preliminary investigation;
the prosecution bears the burden if the right was invoked beyond the set
periods, and it must show that the delay was justifiable under the factors
provided in Cagang.66 In other words, if the O1\1B exceeded the prescribed
period, the burden of proof shifts to the state.67 Catamco v. Sandiganbayan68
instructs that once the burden of proof shifts to prosecution, the prosecution
must prove that: 1) it followed the prescribed procedure in the conduct of
preliminary investigation and in the prosecution of the case, 2) the complexity
of the issues and the volume of evidence made the delay inevitable, and 3) no
prejudice was suffered by the accused as a result of the delay.69
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