MANILA — The Supreme Court (SC) En Banc has ordered the dismissal and disbarment of Judge Oscar D. Tomarong, presiding judge of Branch 28 of the Regional Trial Court (RTC) in Liloy, Zamboanga del Norte, for the murder of a fellow judge.

The ruling followed disciplinary proceedings initiated by the Judicial Integrity Board (JIB) after Tomarong’s criminal conviction for planning the 2019 killing of Judge Reymar L. Lacaya, then presiding judge of Branch 11, RTC, Sindangan, Zamboanga del Norte.

In 2019, the SC had reassigned the two judges to each other’s court branches. Shortly after Lacaya finished court hearings in Branch 28 one afternoon, gunshots were heard as he walked toward his car parked behind the court building. He was later found dead beside his vehicle.

During the criminal trial, Juliber Cabating, a public works employee who also served as Tomarong’s errand aide, testified that Tomarong instructed him to look for hired killers to murder Lacaya. Cabating said Tomarong paid the killers PHP 250,000 through him.

The SC ordered Tomarong’s dismissal from service, forfeiture of retirement benefits, disbarment from the practice of law, and perpetual disqualification from reemployment in government.

The High Court reiterated that murder is a crime involving moral turpitude and a serious offense warranting dismissal under the Rules of Court. Moral turpitude, the SC said, refers to acts that are grossly immoral, dishonest, and contrary to one’s duty to society.

“The crime involved is a patent breach of the very essence of what it means to be a judge who carries the obligation and privilege of serving the people. At a time when the rise in the attacks against judges has even necessitated the adoption of measures to protect judges, a judge committing the murder of a fellow judge must be punished swiftly and severely,” the SC said.

Although Tomarong’s criminal conviction is still on appeal, the SC ruled that a final conviction is not required to impose administrative penalties. It stressed that administrative cases are separate from criminal cases and require only substantial evidence, not proof beyond reasonable doubt.

The Court found substantial evidence that Tomarong hired killers to murder Lacaya, citing Cabating’s testimony, another witness who said he was with the hired killers on the morning of the murder, and an eyewitness who identified the killers fleeing the court building shortly after the shooting.

The SC also declared Tomarong unfit to practice law, citing the Code of Professional Responsibility and Accountability, which prohibits lawyers from engaging in unlawful, dishonest, or immoral conduct. It said a lawyer who shows “utter disregard for the sanctity of human life” cannot remain in the legal profession.

Emphasizing accountability within the judiciary, the SC said public trust is undermined when judges violate the laws they are sworn to uphold.

“[N]o one, not even members of the Bench, is above the law. Judges are the embodiment of law and justice. . . . The Judiciary’s task of maintaining the people’s trust is undermined whenever judges neglect their duties, and worse, violate the laws that they are supposed to uphold. This case is the Court’s proof of its commitment to the public that no judge who so callously breaches the law and perpetrates an injustice will go unpunished,” the SC said.

The High Court also reminded all courts of their duty to promptly report any convictions of judges and court personnel to the JIB, now known as the Judicial Integrity Office, in accordance with the Rules of Court.