The Language of Police Arrest in the Philippines

The policy of police arrest in the Philippines requires the reading of the Miranda doctrine to the arrestee as stipulated in the Philippine Constitution. This Miranda doctrine provides an arrestee or any suspect an awareness of his right to remain silent and to get his own lawyer. While some police officers observe such policy, others tend to disregard the significance of reading the Miranda doctrine during the actual arrest. Using the qualitative descriptive method and drawing data from interviews, this paper seeks to investigate the language of police arrest and to draw implications on the upholding of the Miranda doctrine in the Philippines. It also seeks to review the policy of police arrest and its alignment with the actual practice. The finding of the research reveals that there is a mismatch between the policy and practice of police arrest in the Philippines. In addition, the improper use of language in the legal domain leads to marginalization of arrestees who are at a great disadvantage before the law. Further, this study suggests the need to explain clearly the content and meaning of the Miranda doctrine by the arresting officer to the arrestee.