LUCIO ARIZ, PETITIONER, VS. THE COURT OF FIRST INSTANCE OF MANILA, THE CITY FISCAL, THE DIRECTOR OF POSTS, MANILA, AND MARIA ABELLA VIUDA DE EUSTAQUIO PASCUA, RESPONDENTS.

These certiorari proceedings raise the
question of the right of a party to have a writ of execution or
garnishment on the savings of insular prisoners deposited in the
Philippine Postal Savings Bank.

Lucio Ariz is serving a sentence of life imprisonment for murder
in Bilibid Prison, and is also under obligation to pay the heirs of the
deceased P1,000 as indemnity. During his1 confinement the prisoner has
succeeded in earning the sum of P67.06 which has been deposited in his
name in the Philippine Postal Savings Bank. Ascertaining this fact in
some unknown manner, the offended party in the criminal case, the widow
of the deceased, filed a motion in the Court of First Instance of
Manila, in which she prayed for the issuance of a writ of execution
directed to the Philippine Postal Savings Bank ordering the bank to
turn over to her the sum of P67.06 standing to the credit of Lucio
Ariz. The Assistant City Fiscal noted his conformity to the motion, and
the trial judge appended thereto “como se pide”. The Director of Posts
had no other recourse than to obey the order and to pay over to the
widow of the deceased the money deposited by Lucio Ariz. Up to this
point, it should be mentioned that neither-the prisoner nor the
Director of Prisons had notice of the pendency of the motion. It was
only when the Director of Posts asked the Director of Prisons to turn
in the deposit book to the Philippine Postal Savings Bank that the
prison authorities became aware of the withdrawal and thereupon entered
their protest.

The Code of Civil Procedure lists the property exempt from
attachment and execution, without including money in the situation of
that here involved. However, the Philippine Postal Savings Bank Law
provides that deposits which do not aggregate more than five hundred
pesos shall not be liable to attachment upon mesne process in any case
except where the cause of action is founded on fraud (Adm. Code, sec.
1995). As this exemption applies only to attachment upon mesne process,
it would afford no protection to a writ of execution upon a final
judgment, which is the case before us. But there is more to be said
than is disclosed by the Code of Civil Procedure and the
above-mentioned provision of the Philippine Postal Savings Bank Law.
The law more specifically controlling is Act No. 2489.

Act No. 2489 of the Philippine Legislature authorizes special
compensation for prisoners as a reward for exceptional conduct and
workmanship. It provides that at least fifty per centum of any amount
that may accumulate to the credit of prisoners under this Act shall be
withheld until after final discharge, the remainder to be subject to
disbursement upon request of the prisoner for the support of dependent
members of his family or for such personal use as may be approved by
the Director of Prisons. As we understand this law, the earnings of the
prisoners are in the nature of trust funds held for the benefit of the
prisoners under the direction of the Director of Prisons. It would,
accordingly, appear appropriate for such funds, when deposited in the
Philippine Postal Savings Bank, to be so deposited by the Director of
Prisons for and on behalf of the prisoner. As a trust fund, a part held
for an indefinite period until the discharge of the prisoner and a part
held for disbursement from time to time, the money earned by the
prisoner would not be liable to garnishment. To hold otherwise would
put at naught the purposes of Act No. 2489, for all incentive for the
prison inmate to work and save would be removed.

Our answer to the inquiry must be in the negative. This means that
the writ of certiorari will issue and that the order of the Court of
First Instance of Manila of August 26, 1933, will be vacated, and the
privilege will be afforded the petitioner of requesting the Court of
First Instance to direct Maria Abella Viuda de Eustaquio Pascua to
restore the amount of P67.06 to the Philippine Postal Savings Bank to
stand to the credit of the petitioner under the direction and control
of the Director of Prisons. So ordered, without costs.

Villa-Real, Hull, Imperial, and Goddard, JJ., concur.