VP Duterte camp weighs next legal moves as QC court retains judge in grave threat case

The legal team of Vice President Sara Duterte is preparing to explore all remaining legal avenues after a Quezon City magistrate refused to recuse himself from her pending grave threats case.

Attorney Paul Lawrence Lim, lead counsel for the Vice President, confirmed Tuesday that they had received the resolution from Quezon City Regional Trial Court (RTC) Branch 98 rejecting their motion for inhibition.

"The Vice President will exercise all available remedies," Lim stated, confirming their intent to challenge the order.

In the same resolution, the court reminded both the prosecution and defense to strictly abide by the sub judice rule and refrain from commenting publicly on the merits of the ongoing proceedings—an order Lim affirmed they would respect.

The criminal charges stem from a November 2024 online briefing in which Duterte publicly claimed she had contracted an assassin to target President Ferdinand Marcos Jr., First Lady Liza Araneta-Marcos, and former House Speaker Martin Romualdez in the event of her own death.

The court issued a warrant for Duterte’s arrest on Sept. 4, though she secured temporary liberty after posting bail the following day. Her formal arraignment, initially set for Sept. 11, remains deferred pending court action on defense motions.

-Paraluman News