Preamble
WHEREAS, the Circuit Criminal Courts created under Republic Act No. 5179, dated September 8, 1967 have only limited jurisdiction concurrent with the Courts of First Instance to try certain specific cases falling under the original and exclusive jurisdiction of the latter; WHEREAS, miscarriages of justice had often resulted when complex crimes filed with the Circuit Criminal Courts where dismissed because not all the elements of the offense cognizable by the Circuit Criminal Court could be proved — as in kidnapping with murder, where the latter offense could not be proved and leaving only kidnapping over which offense the Circuit Criminal Courts have no jurisdiction; and WHEREAS, it is necessary to place within the concurrent jurisdiction of the Courts of First Instance and the Circuit Criminal Courts offenses, whether simple or complex and not otherwise falling under the exclusive jurisdiction of military tribunals, where the penalty provided by law is life imprisonment or death, or within the range of said penalties; NOW, THEREFORE, I, FERDINAND E. MARCOS, President of the Philippines, by virtue of the powers in me vested by the Constitution as Commander-in-Chief of all the Armed Forces of the Philippines, and pursuant to Proclamation No. 1081, dated September 21, 1972 and General Order No. 1, dated September 22, 1972, as amended, do hereby decree as follows: