Title
Abunado vs. People
Case
G.R. No. 159218
Decision Date
Mar 30, 2004
Salvador married twice; second marriage while first was valid. Convicted of bigamy despite annulment case and Narcisa's alleged consent. Penalty modified due to age.
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Case Digest (G.R. No. 159218)

Facts:

  1. First Marriage: On September 18, 1967, Salvador S. Abunado married Narcisa Arceño in Manila.
  2. Separation and Extramarital Affair: In 1988, Narcisa went to Japan for work. She returned to the Philippines in 1992 after learning about Salvador’s extramarital affair and his abandonment of their conjugal home.
  3. Second Marriage: On January 10, 1989, Salvador married Zenaida Biaas in San Mateo, Rizal, while still married to Narcisa.
  4. Discovery of Second Marriage: Narcisa discovered Salvador’s second marriage when she found him cohabiting with another woman in Quezon City.
  5. Legal Proceedings:
    • On January 19, 1995, Salvador filed an annulment case against Narcisa.
    • On May 18, 1995, Narcisa filed a bigamy case against Salvador and Zenaida.
  6. Trial Court Decision: On May 18, 2001, the trial court convicted Salvador of bigamy and sentenced him to 6 years and 1 day to 8 years and 1 day of imprisonment. Zenaida was acquitted due to insufficient evidence.
  7. Court of Appeals Decision: The appellate court modified the penalty, sentencing Salvador to 2 years, 4 months, and 1 day of prision correccional as minimum, to 6 years and 1 day of prision mayor as maximum, considering his age as a mitigating factor.

Issue:

  1. Defective Information: Whether the Information was defective for stating the bigamous marriage occurred in 1995 instead of 1989.
  2. Consent of Narcisa: Whether Narcisa’s alleged consent to Salvador’s second marriage absolved him of criminal liability.
  3. Prejudicial Question: Whether the pending annulment case constituted a prejudicial question that should have suspended the bigamy proceedings.
  4. Proper Penalty: Whether the penalty imposed by the Court of Appeals was proper.

Ruling:

  • (Subscriber-Only)

Ratio:

  • (Subscriber-Only)


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