People of the Philippines vs.

ZZZ
G.R. No. 228828 July 24, 2019
LEONEN,J.;

FISCAL FACUN : CRIMINAL LAW 1

PREPARED BY: MAYRISH F. SANGALANG

FACT:
 ZZZ, 15 years old, was charged with the crime of rape with homicide.
 AAA, 11 years old was the victim.
 ZZZ went at large, but was later arrested. He pleaded not guilty to the crime charge.
 BBB, their uncle testified that on the night of the incident, he saw ZZZ dragging AAA by the
wrist toward the school. He presumed nothing was off, thinking they were relatives. He had
merely reprimanded them before going on his way.
 That on or about the 16th day of May 1996 in the evening, the above­named accused, by means
of force and intimidation, did then and there, willfully, unlawfully and feloniously have sexual
intercourse with AAA against her will and consent and on the same occasion the said accused
did then and there willfully, unlawfully and feloniously strike, assault and club the said victim
inflicting upon her the following:
FACT:
 Cracked temporal skull with brains coming out
 Lacerated wound (1/2) inch long below (L) labia
 which directly caused her death, to the damage and prejudice her heirs
 The prosecution presented five (5) witnesses: (1) the victim's uncle BBB; (2) Senior Police
Officer 3 Jaime Lavarias (SPO3 Lavarias); (3) Dr. Paz Q. Mejia (Dr. Mejia); (4) Dr. Ronald
Bandonill (Dr. Bandonill); and (5) the victim's father CCC.7
 BBB testified that at around 7:00p.m. on May 16, 1996, he was on his way to the store to buy
cigarettes when he saw ZZZ dragging AAA by the wrist toward the school. Though it was dark
and he was about 1 0 meters away, he was able to see them using a flashlight he was carrying.
Still, he said he presumed nothing was off, thinking they were relatives. He had merely
reprimanded them before he went on to buy his cigarette and returned home, where he had a
drinking spree with his nephews
FACT:
 The following day, news spread that AAA was missing. With his cousin Josefino Camilet, BBB
went on a search for his niece and informed barangay officials who then helped to look for her.
 A couple of days later, the barangay officials found a lifeless AAA in a bamboo grove near the
school. BBB said that her niece's naked body had already blackened due to decomposition. On
the same day, he said he found ZZZ in his house-the last time he had ever seen him.
 SPO3 Lavarias testified that he way AAA was found. When he and his companions went they
saw AAA's corpse under the bamboo grove. They came to know the body's identity through
BBB, who also claimed that ZZZ was the person behind the crime. Accompanied by BBB, the
police went to ZZZ's house, but he was nowhere to be found. They proceeded to prepare an
investigation report and requested an autopsy on AAA.
FACT:
 In the police officers' Joint Affidavit, SPO3 Lavarias recalled that they went back to the
barangay on May 20, 1996 and found YYY, ZZZ's brother. YYY told them that on the night of
the incident, he was walking home with ZZZ and AAA when his brother told him to go home
alone
 Dr. Mejia, a municipal health officer in testified that she was the physician who conducted the
initial autopsy as requested by the police officers. According to her report, there was a crack on
AAA's temporal skull and a half-inch long laceration below her left labia, while brain matter
leaked above her left ear. The doctor also noted that the body had already been decomposing
when it was found.
 Dr. Mejia, however, said that she could not give a precise medical opinion on the laceration on
AAA's labia as she was not an obstetrician­gynecologist. She also could not precisely tell how
many days lapsed since AAA had died, though she testified that the cracked temporal skull may
have caused AAA's death.
FACT:
 Dr. Bandonill, the medico-legal officer of the National Bureau of Investigation, testified that he
conducted an autopsy on AAA on May 29, 1996. Upon examination, he found that the cadaver
was at an advanced state of decomposition, the face was contorted, the tongue was protruding /
from the mouth, and all the extremities were flexed. He noted that the contorted face could have
been either due to decomposition or due to a grimace caused by pain before she died.
 Dr. Bandonill also observed contusions on AAA's face, right arm's anterior surface, and the front
and side parts of her thigh. He noted contusions on the genital area, which could have been
caused by a hard or blunt instrument. Clumps of dried blood from the vaginal opening could
have also been caused by a tear inside the genital area
 From these findings, Dr. Bandonill remarked that AAA might have been sexually assaulted. He
added that AAA's death could have been caused by the traumatic cerebral contusion.
ISSUE:
 Whether or not accused-appellant ZZZ is guilty beyond reasonable doubt of the
crime of rape with homicide; and
 Whether or not the prosecution proved that the accused-appellant acted with
discernment.
RULING:
 ZZZ is found guilty beyond reasonable doubt of the special complex crime of
rape with homicide
 He must suffer the full brunt of the penalty of the crime.
 To suffer the indeterminate penalty of 10 years and 1 day of prison mayor, as
minimum,to 17 years and 4 months of reclusion temporal as maximum.
DOCTRINE:
Circumstantial evidence is usually necessary in proving the commission of rape.
Elements of the special complex crime of rape:
 The appellant had carnal knowledge of a woman;
 Carnal knowledge of a woman was achieved by means of force, threat, or
intimidation; and
 By reason or on occasion of such carnal knowledge by means of force, threat or
intimidation, the appellant killed a woman.
DOCTRINE:
Circumstantial evidence is usually necessary in proving the commission of rape.
 Rule 133, Revised rules on Evidence provides:
 Section 4. Circumstantial evidence, when sufficient – Circumstantial evidence
is sufficient for conviction if:
 (a) There is more than one circumstance;
 (b) The facts from which the inference is derived are proven; and
 (c) The combination of all the circumstances is such as to produce a conviction
beyond reasonable doubt.
DOCTRINE:
Circumstantial evidence is usually necessary in proving the commission of rape.
 The circumstantial evidence proffered by the prosecution constitutes an
unbroken chain that leads to a reasonable conclusion that ZZZ, and no other
person, was the author of the crime.
 Proof beyond reasonable doubt does not mean such a degree of proof as to
exclude the possibility of error and produce absolute certainty
 Only moral certainty is required or that degree of proof which produces
conviction in an unprejudiced mind.”
DOCTRINE:
Discernment
 Is the “mental capacity of a minor to fully appreciate the consequences of his
unlawful act.
 Determined by considering all the facts of each case.
 Under Republic Act No. 9344 children above 15 years old but below 18 years
old who acted without discernment are exempt from criminal responsibility.
 If they acted with discernment, they shall not be exempt from criminal
responsibility.