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Rumble/Free for All

FIRST DIVISION
G.R. No. 110994 October 22, 1999
PEOPLE OF THE PHILIPPINES, plaintif-appellee,
vs.
CRESENCIANO MARAMARA alias "Cres!"," accused-appellant.
PAR#O, J.:
The case is an appeal from the decision
1
of the Reional Trial !ourt, "as#ate, "as#ate, $ranch %%, convictin
accused-appellant !resenciano "aramara of murder and sentencin him to sufer the penalt& of reclusion
perpetua and to pa& the victim's heirs the amount of ()*,***.** as medical and funeral e+penses and
(,*,***.** as moral damaes.
On -anuar& ./, )00., %th 1ssistant (rovincial (rosecutor Romeo !. Sampaa 2led 3ith the Reional Trial !ourt an
information
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for murder aainst accused-appellant, allein4
That on Novem#er )5, )00), in the evenin thereof, at $arana& !alpi, "unicipalit& of !laveria, (rovince
of "as#ate, (hilippines and 3ithin the 6urisdiction of this 7onora#le !ourt, the said accused, 3ith intent to
8ill, evident premeditation, treacher& and ta8in advantae of nihttime, did then and there 3ilfull&,
unla3full& and feloniousl& attac8, assault and shoot 3ith a handun one "iuelito Donato, hittin the
latter on the chest, there#& in9ictin 3ound 3hich caused his death.
1t his arrainment on "arch .,, )00.,
$
accused-appellant pleaded not uilt& to the crime chared. Trial
commenced thereafter.
The prosecution's version of the 8illin of "iuelito Donato, as culled from the testimonies of his &ouner #rother
Ricardo Donato
4
and father Rearder Donato,
%
is as follo3s4
1 #ene2t dance sponsored #& the !alpi :lementar& School (arents-Teachers 1ssociation of 3hich accused-
appellant is the president, 3as held in the &ard of accused-appellant's house in $arana& !alpi, !laveria,
"as#ate in the evenin of Novem#er )5, )00). 1t a#out ). midniht, 3hile Ricardo Donato 3as dancin 3ith a
certain Ro3ena del Rosario, one Dante 1rce, a friend of accused-appellant, approached Ricardo Donato and
#o+ed him on the chest. Frihtened, Ro3ena ran a3a& 3hile Ricardo Donato scampered to3ard the fence for
safet&. "iuelito Donato 3as a#out t3o ;.< meters a3a& from 3here Ricardo Donato sta&ed at the fence. Not for
lon, accused-appellant too8 his handun tuc8ed in his 3aist and 2red at victim "iuelito Donato, hittin the
latter on the left #reast. Ricardo Donato tried to help his fallen #rother "iuelito #ut some#od& struc8 Ricardo's
head 3ith an iron #ar 3hich 8noc8ed him out for a#out three ;/< minutes. =hen Ricardo reained consciousness,
he hurried home and informed his parents of 3hat happened to their son "iuelito.1wphi1.nt
Rearder Donato, "iuelito's father, immediatel& 3ent to the crime scene and rushed "iuelito to the (io Duran
7ospital 3here the latter died earl& in the mornin of the ne+t da& ;Novem#er )0, )00)<. $efore "iuelito
e+pired, Rearder Donato as8ed 3ho shot him and "iuelito replied that it 3as accused-appellant.
&
Dr. Nora >. (res#itero conducted a post-mortem e+amination of "iuelito's cadaver and his autops& and his
autops& report
'
revealed that aside from a unshot 3ound, "iuelito's #od& #ore a % cm. lacerated 3ound at
the left temporal area, a % cm. incised 3ound at the left parietal area and a ,., cm. incised 3ound at the riht
iliac area. Dr. (res#itero
(
e+plained that the three ;/< 3ounds 3ere caused #& #lunt and sharp instruments and
considered the possi#ilit& that all four ;%< 3ounds could have #een in9icted #& more than t3o ;.< persons. She
also testi2ed that accused-appellant 3as formerl& her patient 3hom she dianosed as suferin from emp&ema.
The defense had a diferent stor&.
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1t a#out ))4** in the evenin, #rothers Ricardo and "iuelito Donato arrived
at the #ene2t dance and approached the dancin pair of Ro3ena del Rosario and Dante 1rce. Then Ricardo and
"iuelito aned-up on Dante 1rce. 1ccused-appellant, 3ho 3as a#out eiht ;5< meters a3a&, rushed to the
scene to pacif& the trio. Ricardo held accused-appellant's hands at his #ac8 and then "iuelito repeatedl&
sta##ed accused-appellant on diferent parts of his #od&. 1ccused-appellant reained consciousness at the
!laveria hospital 3here Dr. ?il ?e@ora treated him for a fe3 da&s, then transferred him to the (io Duran
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Rumble/Free for All
7ospital. There 3as no 3a& accused-appellant could have resisted "iuelito's attac8, much less 3as he capa#le
of in9ictin in6ur& on "iuelito, since the stroner Ricardo 3as holdin accused-appellant's hands and 3as
drain him a3a& 3hile "iuelito 8ept lunin a si+-inch #laded 3eapon at him.
Dr. ?il ?e@ora testi2ed
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that he attended to accused-appellant at the !laveria 7ospital in the earl& mornin of
Novem#er )0, )00). 1ccused-appellant sufered four ;%< penetratin sta# 3ounds on diferent parts of his #od&
A t3o on the stomach, one on the left nipple and one on the left arm. Dr. ?e@ora had to open accused-
appellant's a#domen ;e+plorator& laparatom&< to determine 3hat internal orans 3ere afected. 1lthouh he
3as accused-appellant's attendin ph&sician, Dr. ?e@ora never as8ed the details of the sta##in incident nor
the identit& of assailant, as he 3as purel& concerned 3ith the treatment of accused-appellant's in6uries.
On the #asis of the prosecution's reconstruction of the events that transpired on that traic niht of Novem#er
)5, )00), on "a& .B, )00/, the trial court rendered a uilt& verdict, the dispositive portion of 3hich reads4
=7:R:FOR:, 2ndin the accused !resenciano "aramara uilt& #e&ond reasona#le dou#t of the crime of
"urder and 3ithout an& mitiatin circumstances and the e+istence of treacher& in usin a 2rearm in
ta8in the life of "iuelito Donato, he is here#& sentenced to sufer the penalt& ofRECLUSION
PERPEU! to #e served at the National (enitentiar&. 7e is further ordered to pa& andCor reim#urse the
famil& of the victim the amount of ()*,***.** as medical e+penses and maintenance durin the 3a8eD
and the amount of (,*,***.** as moral damaes and to pa& the cost of the suit.
IT IS SO ORD:R:D.
7ence, this appeal.
$efore us, accused-appellant challenes the 2ndins of the trial court in the hope of securin an acEuittal or, at
the least, #ein held lia#le onl& for the death of "iuelito Donato in a tumultuous afra& as de2ned under 1rticle
.,) of the Revised (enal !ode.
=e cannot accept an& of accused-appellant's su#missions.
In the main, accused-appellant 3ould assail the credi#ilit& of prosecution 3itnesses Ricardo and Rearder
Donato 3hose testimonies formed the principal #asis for his conviction. The con9ictin claims of the prosecution
and the defense on ho3 "iuelito Donato died is an issue that ultimatel& and unavoida#l& oes into the Euestion
of 3hom to #elieve amon the 3itnesses. The issue of credi#ilit& reEuires a determination that is concededl&
#est left to the trial court 3ith its uniEue position of havin #een ena#led to o#serve that elusive and
incommunica#le evidence of the deportment of 3itnesses on the stand.
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In the a#sence of an& sho3in that
the trial court's cali#ration of credi#ilit& is 9a3ed, this !ourt is #ound #& its assessment.
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?uided #& these lon standin doctrinal pronouncements, 3e 2nd no reason to distur# the trial court's
assessment of ;)< Ricardo Donato's e&e3itness account of ho3 accused-appellant shot "iuelito Donato and ;.<
Rearder Donato's recollection of his son "iuelito's d&in declaration, as truthful testimonies comin from
credi#le 3itnesses. The fact of relationship of prosecution 3itnesses Ricardo and Rearder Donato to the victim
"iuelito Donato does not necessaril& place them in #ad liht. Relationship per se does not ive rise to a
presumption of #ias or ulterior motive, nor does it ipso "acto impair the credi#ilit& or tarnish the testimon& of a
3itness.
1$
=hile revene is a normal reaction in a person 3ho has lost a loved one #ecause of a crime, it does
not follo3 that the revene 3ould #e directed aimlessl& so as to include innocent persons.
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In fact, famil&
mem#ers 3ho have 3itnessed the 8illin of a dear one usuall& strive to remem#er the face of the
assailant.
1%
Such relatives are naturall& interested in implicatin onl& the real culprit, for other3ise, the latter
3ould there#& ain immunit&.
1&
Thus, 3here there is no evidence and nothin to indicate that the principal
3itnesses for the prosecution 3ere actuated #& improper motive, the presumption is that the& 3ere not so
actuated and their testimonies are entitled to full faith and credit.
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=e have further ruled that there is
a#solutel& nothin in this 6urisdiction 3hich disEuali2es a person from testif&in in a criminal case in 3hich a
relative is invo8ed, if the former 3as reall& at the scene of the crime and 3itnessed the e+ecution of the criminal
act.
1(
Rearder Donato's testimon& reardin "iuelito's identi2cation of the accused-appellant as his assailant
certainl& Euali2es as a d&in declaration that is 3orth& of credence. For a d&in declaration to #e admissi#le in
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Rumble/Free for All
evidence, these reEuisites must concur4 ;)< that death is imminent and the declarant is conscious of that factD
;.< that the declaration refers to the cause and surroundin circumstances of such deathD ;/< that the
declaration relates to facts 3hich the victim is competent to testif& toD ;%< that the declarant thereafter diesD and
;,< that the declaration is ofered in a criminal case 3herein the declarant's death is the su#6ect of inEuir&.
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The
deree and seriousness of the 3ounds sufered #& the victim "iuelito Donato and the fact that his death
supervened shortl& thereafter ma& #e considered as su#stantial evidence that the declaration 3as made #& him
3ith the full realiFation that he 3as in a d&in condition.
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The victim "iuelito Donato's d&in declaration
havin satis2ed all these reEuisites, it must #e considered as an evidence of the hihest order #ecause, at the
threshold of death, all thouhts of fa#rication are stilled. 1 victim's utterance after sustainin a mortal 3ound
ma& #e considered pure emanations of the incident.
21
There is no merit in accused-appellant's position that he should #e held lia#le onl& for death caused in a
tumultuous afra& under 1rticle .,) of the Revised (enal !ode. It 3as in such situation that accused came at the
scene and 6oined the fra& purportedl& to pacif& the protaonists 3hen "iuelito attac8ed him causin four ;%<
sta# 3ounds in diferent parts of his #od& A t3o on the stomach, one on the left nipple, and one on the left arm.
Then accused-appellant 3ith his handun shot "iuelito.1wphi1.nt
1ssumin that a rum#le or a free-for-all 2ht occurred at the #ene2t dance, 1rticle .,) of the Revised (enal
!ode cannot appl& #ecause prosecution 3itnesses Ricardo and Rearder Donato positivel& identi2ed accused-
appellant as "iuelito Donato's 8iller.
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=hile accused-appellant himself sufered multiple sta# 3ounds 3hich, at 2rst #lush, ma& lend verit& to his claim
that a rum#le ensued and that victim "iuelito in9icted upon him these 3ounds, the evidence is inadeEuate to
consider them as a mitiatin circumstance #ecause the defense's version stands discredited in liht of the
more credi#le version of the prosecution as to the circumstances surroundin the "iuelito's death.
=e do not su#scri#e, ho3ever, to the trial court's appreciation of treacher& 3hich, 3e note, 3as discussed onl&
in the dispositive portion of the decision and 3hich 3as #ased solel& on the fact that appellant used a 2rearm in
8illin the victim "iuelito Donato. The use of a 2rearm is not suGcient indication of treacher&. In the a#sence of
an& convincin proof that accused-appellant consciousl& and deli#eratel& adopted the means #& 3hich he
committed the crime in order to ensure its e+ecution, the !ourt must resolve the dou#t in favor of accused-
appellant.
2$
1nd 3here treacher& is not adeEuatel& proved, the accused-appellant can #e convicted onl& of
homicide.
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1s accused-appellant is lia#le for homicide, it is the penalt& for homicide that shall #e imposed. The penalt&
prescri#ed for homicide is reclusion temporal.
2%
There 3as attendant neither mitiatin nor aravatin
circumstances so that the prescri#ed penalt& of reclusion temporal shall #e imposed in its medium
period.
2&
1ppl&in the Indeterminate Sentence >a3, accused-appellant ma& #e sentenced to an indeterminate
penalt& 3ithin the rane of the penalt& ne+t lo3er in deree to that prescri#ed for the ofense, that is, prision
ma#or, as the minimum, and 3ithin the rane of reclusion temporal in its medium period, as the ma+imum.
2'
1s to the damaes a3arded, the trial court erred in a3ardin moral damaes in lieu of civil indemnit&. "oral
damaes ma& not #e a3arded if there is no leal #asis therefor.
2(
Nor it ma& #e imposed in su#stitution of civil
indemnit&. HThe t3o a3ards A one for actual damaes and the other for moral damaes A cannot #e dealt 3ith
in the areateD neither #ein 8indred terms nor overned #& a coincident set of rules, each must #e
separatel& identi2ed and independentl& 6usti2ed.H
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!onseEuentl&, the amount of (,*,***.** a3arded #& the
trial court as moral damaes must #e considered as civil indemnit&.
$0
)HEREFORE, the !ourt here#& MODIFIES the judgment appealed from. The !ourt 2nds accused-appellant
!resenciano "aramara "*+t, be,o!- re.so!.b+e o/ 0o1c-e, de2ned and penaliFed under 1rticle .%0 of
the Revised (enal !ode, for the 8illin of "iuelito Donato 3ithout the attendance of an& modif&in
circumstance. 1ccordinl&, the !ourt here#& S:NT:N!:S accused-appellant !resenciano "aramara to sufer the
indeterminate penalt& of ten ;)*< &ears of prision ma#or, as minimum, to seventeen ;)B< &ears, and four ;%<
months of reclusion temporal, as ma+imum, 3ith all its accessor& penalties, and to pa& the heirs of "iuelito
Donato in the amount of ()*,***.** as actual damaes and (,*,***.** as death indemnit&.1wphi1.nt
!osts aainst the accused-appellant.
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SO OR#ERE#.