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G.R. No. 202867 - People v. Labiaga
G.R. No. 202867 - People v. Labiaga
DECISION
CARPIO, J : p
The Case
The same individuals were charged with Frustrated Murder with the Use
of Unlicensed Firearm in Criminal Case No. 2002-1777, under an Information 4
which states:
That on or about December 23, 2000 in the Municipality of Ajuy,
Province of Iloilo, Philippines, and within the jurisdiction of this
Honorable Court, the above-named accused, conspiring, confederating
and helping one another, armed with unlicensed firearm, with
deliberate intent and decided purpose to kill, by means of treachery
and with evident premeditation, did then and there wilfully, unlawfully
and feloniously attack, assault and shoot Gregorio Conde with said
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unlicensed firearm, hitting him on the posterior aspect, middle third
right forearm 1 cm. in diameter; thereby performing all the acts of
execution which would produce the crime of Murder as a consequence,
but nevertheless did not produce it by reason of causes independent of
the will of the accused; that is by the timely and able medical
assistance rendered to said Gregorio Conde which prevented his death.
CONTRARY TO LAW.
Gregorio and Judy were rushed to the Sara District Hospital. Judy was
pronounced dead on arrival while Gregorio made a full recovery after treatment
of his gunshot wound.
Dr. Jeremiah Obañana conducted the autopsy of Judy. His report stated
that her death was caused by "cardiopulmonary arrest secondary to Cardiac
Tamponade due to gunshot wound." 5
Dr. Jose Edwin Figura, on the other hand, examined Gregorio after the
incident. He found that Gregorio sustained a gunshot wound measuring one
centimeter in diameter in his right forearm and "abrasion wounds hematoma
formation" in his right shoulder. 6
SO ORDERED. 7 ATHCDa
Appellant impugned the RTC's Joint Decision, claiming that "[the RTC]
gravely erred in convicting the [appellant] of the crime charged despite failure
of the prosecution to prove his guilt beyond reasonable doubt." 8 The CA-Cebu,
however, upheld the conviction for murder and frustrated murder.
The CA-Cebu also modified the Joint Decision by imposing the payment of
moral and exemplary damages in both criminal cases. The CA-Cebu made a
distinction between the civil indemnity awarded by the RTC in Criminal Case
No. 2001-1555 and the moral damages. The CA-Cebu pointed out that:
The trial court granted the amount of P50,000.00 as civil indemnity in
Criminal Case No. 2001-1555. It did not award moral damages.
Nonetheless, the trial court should have awarded both, considering
that they are two different kinds of damages. For death indemnity,
the amount of P50,000.00 is fixed "pursuant to the current judicial
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policy on the matter, without need of any evidence or proof of
damages. Likewise, the mental anguish of the surviving family should
be assuaged by the award of appropriate and reasonable moral
damages." 9
SO ORDERED.
SO ORDERED. 10
Appellant's claim that he did not know whether Gregorio was hit when the
shotgun accidentally fired is also implausible.
Since the conclusions made by the RTC regarding the credibility of the
witnesses were not tainted with arbitrariness or oversight or misapprehension
of relevant facts, the same must be sustained by this Court.
In the instant case, the Condes were unarmed when they were shot by
appellant. The use of a 12-gauge shotgun against two unarmed victims is
undoubtedly treacherous, as it denies the victims the chance to fend off the
offender.
Article 6 of the Revised Penal Code defines the stages in the commission
of felonies:
Art. 6. Consummated, frustrated, and attempted felonies. —
Consummated felonies as well as those which are frustrated and
attempted, are punishable.
1.) In [a] frustrated felony, the offender has performed all the acts
of execution which should produce the felony as a consequence;
whereas in [an] attempted felony, the offender merely commences
the commission of a felony directly by overt acts and does not
perform all the acts of execution.
In the instant case, it does not appear that the wound sustained by
Gregorio Conde was mortal. This was admitted by Dr. Edwin Figura, who
examined Gregorio after the shooting incident:
Prosecutor Con-El:
Q: When you examined the person of Gregorio Conde, can you tell the
court what was the situation of the patient when you examined him?
A: Yes, Your Honor, not serious. He has also abrasion wounds hematoma
formation at the anterior aspect right shoulder. 22
Since Gregorio's gunshot wound was not mortal, we hold that appellant
should be convicted of attempted murder and not frustrated murder. Under
Article 51 of the Revised Penal Code, the corresponding penalty for attempted
murder shall be two degrees lower than that prescribed for consummated
murder under Article 248, that is, prision correccional in its maximum period to
prision mayor in its medium period. Section 1 of the Indeterminate Sentence
Law provides: AICTcE
SO ORDERED. SDITAC
Footnotes
*Designated Acting Member per Special Order No. 1484 dated 9 July 2013.
1.Rollo, pp. 2-18. Penned by Acting Executive Justice Pampio A. Abarintos, with
Justices Eduardo B. Peralta, Jr. and Gabriel T. Ingles, concurring.
8.Id. at 26.
9.Rollo, p. 15, citing People v. Mayingque , G.R. No. 179709, 6 July 2010, 624 SCRA
123.
10.Id. at 17-18.
12.Id. at 121.
13.Rollo, p. 13.
16.Id. at 589, citing People v. Dion , G.R. No. 181035, 4 July 2011, 653 SCRA 117,
133.
21.People v. Costales , 424 Phil. 321 (2002), citing People v. Dela Cruz, 353 Phil.
362 (1998) and People v. Zaragosa, 58 O.G. 4519.
23.People v. Lucero , G.R. No. 179044, 6 December 2010, 636 SCRA 533.
24.Id.