Title
Basan y Gobot vs. People
Case
G.R. No. L-39483
Decision Date
Nov 29, 1974
A petitioner pleaded guilty to homicide, invoking mitigating circumstances; the Supreme Court revised his sentence under the Indeterminate Sentence Law.
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Case Digest (G.R. No. L-39483)

Facts:

  1. Charges and Plea:
    Petitioner Francisco Basan y Gobot was charged with two counts of homicide in Criminal Cases Nos. 704 and 705 of the Court of First Instance of Camarines Sur. He pleaded guilty to both charges and invoked the mitigating circumstances of voluntary surrender and plea of guilty, which the prosecution did not contest.

  2. Initial Sentence:
    The trial court sentenced him to an indeterminate penalty of six (6) years and one (1) day of prision mayor (minimum) to ten (10) years of prision mayor (maximum) for each case. He was also ordered to indemnify the heirs of the deceased with P15,000.00 and to pay the costs.

  3. Motion for Reconsideration:
    The petitioner filed a motion for reconsideration, arguing that the trial court failed to properly apply the Indeterminate Sentence Law. He contended that the minimum penalty should have been within the range of prision correccional (six months and one day to six years) instead of prision mayor.

  4. Appeal to the Supreme Court:
    The trial court denied the motion for reconsideration. The petitioner appealed to the Supreme Court, which treated the appeal as a special civil action due to procedural requirements under the Judiciary Act, as amended by Republic Act 5440.

  5. Solicitor General's Comment:
    The Solicitor General agreed with the petitioner, stating that the penalty imposed by the trial court was not in accordance with the law and requested that the proper penalty be imposed.

Issue:

The main issue in this case is whether the trial court correctly applied the Indeterminate Sentence Law in imposing the penalty on the petitioner, considering the mitigating circumstances of plea of guilty and voluntary surrender.

Ruling:

The Supreme Court granted the petition and modified the penalty imposed by the trial court. The Court held that the minimum penalty should have been within the range of prision correccional (six months and one day to six years) and the maximum within the medium period of prision mayor (eight years and one day to ten years). The Court imposed an indeterminate penalty of six (6) months and one (1) day of prision correccional (minimum) to eight (8) years and one (1) day of prision mayor (maximum) for each case.

Ratio:

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