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People vs. Paycana, Jr. 551 SCRA 657 16apr2008 PDF
People vs. Paycana, Jr. 551 SCRA 657 16apr2008 PDF
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* SECOND DIVISION.
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660
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TINGA, J.:
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trado, Jr., the embalmer who removed the fetus from the
deceased’s body.
The evidence for the prosecution established that on 26
November 2002, at around 6:30 in the morning, appellant,
who worked as a butcher, came home from the slaughter
house carrying his tools of trade, a knife, a bolo, and a
sharpener.4 His wife was preparing their children for
school and was waiting for him to come home from his
work. For reasons known to him alone, appellant stabbed
his wife 14 times.5 Tito, whose house is at back of
appellant’s house, heard his daughter shouting for help.
When he arrived, he saw his daughter lying prostrate near
the door and her feet were trembling. But seeing appellant,
who was armed, he stepped back. Angelina told Tito by the
window that appellant had held her mother’s neck and
stabbed her.6
Appellant claimed that he wrested the weapon from
Lilybeth after she stabbed him first. According to him, they
had an altercation on the evening of 25 November 2002
because he saw a man coming out from the side of their
house and when he confronted his wife about the man, she
did not answer. On the following morning, he told her that
they should live separately. As appellant got his things and
was on his way out of the door, Lilybeth stabbed him. But
he succeeded in wresting the knife from Lilybeth. And he
stabbed her. He added that he was not aware of the
number of times he stabbed his wife because he was then
dizzy and lots of blood was coming out of his wound.7
The trial court found appellant guilty in a decision dated
14 April 2005.8 The case was automatically appealed to the
Court
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11 CA Rollo, pp. 109-110. The notice of appeal was filed pursuant to
A.M. No. 00-5-03-SC (Re: Amendments to the Revised Rules of Criminal
Procedure to Govern Death Penalty Cases), to wit: x x x x
Sec. 13. Certification or appeal of case to the Supreme Court.—(a)
Whenever the Court of Appeals finds that the penalty of death should be
imposed, the court shall render judgment but refrain from making an
entry of judgment and forthwith certify the case and elevate its entire
record to the Supreme Court for review.
(b) Where the judgment also imposes a lesser penalty for offenses
committed on the same occasion or which arose out of the same occurrence
that gave rise to the more severe offense for which the penalty of death is
imposed, and the accused appeals, the appeal shall be included in the case
certified for review to, the Supreme Court.
(c) In cases where the Court of Appeals imposes reclusion perpetua,
life imprisonment or a lesser penalty, it shall render and enter judgment
imposing such penalty. The judgment may be appealed to the Supreme
Court by notice of appeal filed with the Court of Appeals.
12 People v. Maceda, G.R. No. 91106, 27 May 1991, 197 SCRA 499, 510.
664
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and he saw her lying prostate near the door with her feet
trembling. He moved back as he saw appellant armed with
a weapon. Angelina told him by the window that appellant
had held her mother’s neck and stabbed her.17
Moreover, Dr. Rey Tanchuling, a defense witness who
attended to appellant’s wound, testified on cross-
examination that the injuries suffered by appellant were
possibly self-inflicted considering that they were mere
superficial wounds.18
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“Angelina who is 15 years old will not testify against her father
were it not for the fact that she personally saw her father to be
the aggressor and stab her mother. Telling her grandfather
immediately after the incident that accused stabbed her mother is
part of the res gestae hence, admissible as evidence. Between the
testimony of Angelica who positively identified accused to have
initiated the stabbing and continuously stabbed her mother and
on the other hand, the testimony of accused that he killed the
victim in self-defense, the testimony of the former prevails.”21
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22 Art. 246. Parricide.—Any person who shall kill his father, mother,
or child, whether legitimate or illegitimate, or any of his ascendants, or
descendants, or his spouse, shall be guilty of parricide and shall be
punished by the penalty of reclusion perpetua to death.
23 People v. Dominador Velasco, 404 Phil. 369, 379; 351 SCRA 539, 548
(2001). Citing People v. Malabago, G.R. No. 115686, 2 December 1996, 265
SCRA 198. See Note 3.
24 Art. 255. Infanticide.—The penalty provided for parricide in
Article 246 and for murder in Article 248 shall be imposed upon any
person who shall kill any child less than three days of age.
If any crime penalized in this article be committed by the mother
of the child for the purpose of concealing her dishonor, she shall
suffer the penalty of prision mayor in its medium and maximum
periods, and if said crime be committed for the same purpose by the
maternal grandparents or either of them, the penalty shall be
reclusion remporal.
25 Art. 257. Unintentional abortion.—The penalty of prision
correccional in its minimum and medium periods shall be imposed upon
any person who shall cause an abortion by violence, but unintentionally.
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Civil indemnity in the amount of P50,000.00 (consistent
with prevailing jurisprudence) is automatically granted to
the offended party, or his/her heirs in case of the former’s
death, without need of further evidence other than the fact
of the commission of any of the aforementioned crimes
(murder, homicide, parricide and rape). Moral and
exemplary damages may be separately granted in addition
to indemnity. Moral damages can be awarded only upon
sufficient proof that the complainant is entitled thereto in
accordance with Art. 2217 of the Civil Code, while
exemplary damages can be awarded if the crime is
committed with one or more aggravating circumstances
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WHEREFORE, the appeal is DISMISSED. The Decision
of the Court of Appeals is AFFIRMED.
SO ORDERED.
Judgment affirmed.
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