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* THIRD DIVISION.
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People vs. Odtuhan
People vs. Odtuhan
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23 Id., at pp. 16-17.
19 466 Phil. 1013; 422 SCRA 376 (2004).
24 G.R. No. 181089, October 22, 2012, 684 SCRA 315.
20 Rollo, p. 44.
25 G.R. No. 188775, August 24, 2011, 656 SCRA 307.
21 Id., at pp. 44-45.
26 G.R. No. 183824, December 8, 2010, 637 SCRA 615.
22 Id., at p. 46.
512 29 The Revised Rules of Criminal Procedure, Rule 117, Section 4.
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People vs. Odtuhan
June 21, 2007, the prosecution filed an information for
bigamy against respondent which the latter sought to be
quashed on the ground that the facts charged do not tained, the court may order that another complaint or
constitute an offense. information be filed30 except when the information is
The present case stemmed from similar procedural and quashed on the ground of extinction of criminal liability or
factual antecedents as in the above cases. As in Antone and double jeopardy.31
Montañez, respondent moved to quash the information on An examination of the information filed against
the grounds that the facts do not charge the offense of respondent, however, shows the sufficiency of the
bigamy and that his criminal liability has been allegations therein to constitute the crime of bigamy as it
extinguished both because of the declaration of nullity of contained all the elements of the crime as provided for in
the first marriage. The RTC refused to quash the Article 34932 of the Revised Penal Code, to wit:
information. On petition for certiorari, the CA, however, (1) That the offender has been legally married;
reached a different conclusion. (2) That the first marriage has not been legally dissolved or, in case
As defined in Antone, „a motion to quash information is his or her spouse is absent, the absent spouse could not yet be
the mode by which an accused assails the validity of a presumed dead according to the Civil Code;
criminal complaint or information filed against him for (3) That he contracts a second or subsequent marriage; and
insufficiency on its face in point of law, or for defects which (4) hat the second or subsequent marriage has all the essential
are apparent in the face of the information.‰ It is a requisites for validity.33
hypothetical admission of the facts alleged in the
information. The fundamental test in determining the Here, the information contained the following
sufficiency of the material averments in an Information is allegations: (1) that respondent is legally married to
whether or not the facts alleged therein, which are Modina; (2) that without such marriage having been legally
hypothetically admitted, would establish the essential dissolved; (3) that respondent willfully, unlawfully, and
elements of the crime defined by law. Evidence aliunde or feloniously contracted a second marriage with Alagon; and
matters extrinsic of the information are not to be (4) that the second marriage has all the essential requisites
considered.27 To be sure, a motion to quash should be based for validity. RespondentÊs evidence showing the courtÊs
on a defect in the information which is evident on its fact.28 declaration that his marriage to
Thus, if the defect can be cured by amendment or if it is
based on the ground that the facts charged do not _______________
constitute an offense, the prosecution is given by the court 30 The Revised Rules of Criminal Procedure, Rule 117, Section 5.
the opportunity to correct the defect by amendment.29 If 31 The Revised Rules of Criminal Procedure, Rule 117, Section 6.
the motion to quash is sus- 32 Art. 349. Bigamy.·The penalty of prision mayor shall be
imposed upon any person who shall contract a second or subsequent
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27 People v. Balao, G.R. No. 176819, January 26, 2011, 640 SCRA 565, the absent spouse has been declared presumptively dead by means of a
573; Go v. The Fifth Division, Sandiganbayan, 549 Phil. 783, 805; 521 judgment rendered in the proper proceedings.
SCRA 270, 291 (2007). 33 Nollora, Jr. v. People, G.R. No. 191425, September 7, 2011, 657
28 Santos v. People, G.R. No. 173176, August 26, 2008, 563 SCRA 341, SCRA 330, 342; Teves v. People, supra note 25, at p. 312; Antone v.
368. Beronilla, supra note 26, at pp. 627-628.
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People vs. Odtuhan People vs. Odtuhan
Modina is null and void from the beginning because of the The Family Code has settled once and for all the
absence of a marriage license is only an evidence that seeks conflicting jurisprudence on the matter. A declaration of the
to establish a fact contrary to that alleged in the absolute nullity of a marriage is now explicitly required
information that a first valid marriage was subsisting at either as a cause of action or a ground for defense.37 It has
the time he contracted the second marriage. This should been held in a number of cases that a judicial declaration of
not be considered at all, because matters of defense cannot nullity is required before a valid subsequent marriage can
be raised in a motion to quash.34 It is not proper, therefore, be contracted; or else, what transpires is a bigamous
to resolve the charges at the very outset without the benefit marriage, reprehensible and immoral.38
of a full blown trial. The issues require a fuller examination What makes a person criminally liable for bigamy is
and it would be unfair to shut off the prosecution at this when he contracts a second or subsequent marriage during
stage of the proceedings and to quash the information on the subsistence of a valid marriage.39 Parties to the
the basis of the document presented by respondent.35 With marriage should not be permitted to judge for themselves
the presentation of the court decree, no facts have been its nullity, for the same must be submitted to the judgment
brought out which destroyed the prima facie truth accorded of competent courts and only when the nullity of the
to the allegations of the information on the hypothetical marriage is so declared can it be held as void, and so long
admission thereof. as there is no such declaration, the presumption is that the
RespondentÊs motion to quash was founded on the trial marriage exists. Therefore, he who contracts a second
courtÊs declaration that his marriage with Modina is null marriage before the judicial declaration of nullity of the
and void ab initio. He claims that with such declaration, first marriage assumes the risk of being prosecuted for
one of the elements of the crime is wanting. Thus, the bigamy.40 If we allow respondentÊs line of defense and the
allegations in the information do not charge the offense of CAÊs ratiocination, a person who commits bigamy can
bigamy, or at the very least, such court decree extinguished simply evade prosecution by immediately filing a petition
his criminal liability. Both respondent and the CA heavily for the declaration of nullity of his earlier marriage and
relied on the CourtÊs pronouncement in Morigo v. People36 hope that a favorable decision is rendered therein before
where the accused therein was acquitted because the anyone institutes a complaint against him.41
elements of the crime of bigamy were incomplete. In said Respondent, likewise, claims that there are more
case, the first marriage was declared null and void, because reasons to quash the information against him, because he
the parties only signed the marriage contract without the obtained the declaration of nullity of marriage before the
presence of a solemnizing officer. Considering, therefore, filing of the complaint for bigamy against him. Again, we
that the declaration of nullity retroacts to the date of the cannot sustain such contention. In addition to the
first marriage, the Court held that there was no marriage discussion above, settled is the rule that criminal
to speak of when the accused contracted the second culpability attaches to the offender upon the commission of
marriage. Logically, the accused was acquitted. the offense and from that instant,
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34 Antone v. Beronilla, supra note 26, at p. 628. 37 Teves v. People, supra note 25, at p. 313.
35 Id., at p. 627. 38 Id., at pp. 313-314.
36 Supra note 19. 39 Montañez v. Cipriano, supra note 24, at p. 325.
40 Id., at pp. 325-326.
41 Teves v. People, supra note 25, at p. 314. 517
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42 Id.
43 Antone v. Beronilla, supra note 26, at p. 632. (Italics in the original)