US vs.

Divino, 12 Phil 175

Facts: This cause was brought against Feliciano Divino for the crime of lesiones graves,
and appealed by him to this court from a judgment of the Court of First Instance of
Davao, Moro Province A girl named Alfonsa, about 13 years of age when the incident
happened, was a servant for Feliciano Divino and his family. Her feet were the focus in
this case because it is said that Feliciano Divino burned her feet, in a very unorthodox
and harmful way in a sense, by setting her feet on fire after applying petroleum to it and
tying her down to the floor. He argued in the court that when Alfonsa came to their
home, her body was full of scars and ulcers, and that the ulcer in her body was cured,
through his efforts.

Issue: Whether Feliciano Divino can be acquitted because he argued that he acted in
good faith and did not mean any harm to the girl, except to help her get cured.

Held: The expert testimony offered by the prosecution should be carefully noted — the
burns are supposed to have been caused two years previously — on account of a large
ulcer that she had on the left foot, in a place that showed an old scar; according to the
court's remark on folio 109, said left foot was the most deformed." Medical arguments
were brought in the light of the decision and that a doctor clearly identified that the scars
on Alfonsa’s feet were indeed because of burns and that the wounds became worse on
account of Feliciano’s efforts to cure them. Certainly it was found certain that the acts of
the guilty person do not seem to have been intended to cause an evil, but rather as a
remedy. However, article 568 or the Penal Code clearly states that a person that
undertakes medical assistance to another person is liable for any injuries resulting from
such treatment, and the fact that he acted in good faith and according to the best of his
ability does not relieve him from responsibility, although his ignorance may be
considered as a mitigating circumstance. Feliciano Divino should be, and he is hereby,
sentenced for simple imprudence