Case Digest (A.C. No. 6927) Core Legal Reasoning
Core Legal Reasoning
Facts:
In G.R. No. 156747 (February 23, 2005), petitioners Allen A. Macasaet (publisher), Nicolas V. Quijano, Jr. (managing editor), Alfie Lorenzo (columnist), and Roger Parajes (editor) of the newspaper Abante were charged with libel by Information dated July 10, 1997 before the Regional Trial Court (RTC), Branch 93, Quezon City. The Information alleged that on July 13, 1996 they maliciously published in Abante a defamatory article imputing vice and defect to one Joselito Magallanes Trinidad (private respondent), a purported resident of Marikina City, thereby exposing him to public contempt. The City Prosecutor’s Resolution finding probable cause was scheduled for DOJ review by petitioners, yet the RTC proceeded with arraignment on August 27, 1997, entering pleas of “not guilty” for those who refused to plead. Petitioners moved to dismiss for lack of jurisdiction, arguing under Article 360, RPC, that venue lay only where the offended party resided (Marikina) or where the libel was fir Case Digest (A.C. No. 6927) Expanded Legal Reasoning
Expanded Legal Reasoning
Facts:
- Parties, publication, and charge
- Accused: Alfie Lorenzo (columnist), Allen A. Macasaet (publisher), Nicolas V. Quijano, Jr. (managing editor), Roger B. Parajes (editor), and Jordan Castillo (source/interviewee) of Abante, a newspaper of general circulation.
- Private complainant: Joselito Magallanes “Joey/Toto” Trinidad.
- Charge: Libel under Article 353 et seq. of the Revised Penal Code, via an Information dated 10 July 1997 filed in the RTC, Quezon City, Branch 93 (Judge Apolinario D. Bruselas, Jr.), for an article published in Abante on 13 July 1996 imputing derogatory matters to Trinidad.
- Information particulars: It recited the publication date and the identities/positions of the accused, and identified Trinidad as offended party; it perfunctorily bore “Quezon City” in the caption, but did not expressly allege the place where the libel was printed and first published nor where the offended party actually resided at the time of the alleged offense.
- Proceedings in the RTC
- Arraignment: Set for 27 August 1997; petitioners moved to suspend arraignment to elevate the prosecutor’s resolution to the DOJ; motion denied; on 27 August 1997, Lorenzo, Quijano, Parajes, and Castillo refused to plead and were entered “not guilty”; Macasaet’s arraignment reset to 20 October 1997.
- Motion to Dismiss (12 September 1997): Petitioners sought dismissal for lack of jurisdiction/venue under Article 360, asserting (a) Abante was printed/first published in Manila; and (b) the Information and supporting papers showed Trinidad’s residence as Marikina, not Quezon City.
- Prosecution’s opposition: Claimed Trinidad actually resided in both Quezon City (Sikatuna Village) and Marikina at the material time, citing his Reply-Affidavit in preliminary investigation.
- Petitioners’ rejoinder and evidence: Argued jurisdiction is determined strictly by the Information’s allegations; produced (a) barangay certification from Brgy. Malaya, Quezon City stating no record of “Joselito Trinidad”; (b) barangay certification from Brgy. Sto. Niño, Marikina stating Trinidad is a bona fide resident; (c) Abante editorial box showing offices in Intramuros, Manila; (d) page 4 of the Information listing Trinidad’s address as Marikina, with a handwritten note of a Quezon City address (131 Scout Lozano, Brgy. Sacred Heart).
- Private complainant’s stance: Questioned the probative worth of barangay certifications, claimed receipt of DOJ-related mail at his Quezon City address, and later filed a motion for reconsideration asserting actual residence in Quezon City at the time of publication; submitted a supplemental motion with an affidavit of Cristina B. Del Rosario (alleged lessor) stating Trinidad lived at her Sikatuna Village property from July 1996 to May 1997.
- RTC rulings: On 24 November 1997, dismissed the case for lack of jurisdiction/venue; on 12 February 1998, denied reconsideration, characterizing Del Rosario’s affidavit as belated “curative evidence” of suspect weight.
- Appeal to the Court of Appeals (CA-G.R. CR No. 22067)
- Appellants: Public and private prosecutors filed notice of appeal; CA reversed the RTC on 22 March 2002 and remanded for trial; MR denied on 6 January 2003.
- CA holdings: Venue proper in Quezon City because “actual residence” controls; defect in the original complaint was cured by Trinidad’s supplemental affidavit in preliminary investigation; amendments allowed under Rule 110, Sec. 14; barangay certifications had little probative value; Del Rosario’s affidavit supported Quezon City residence.
- Petition for Review to the Supreme Court (G.R. No. 156747)
- Petitioners’ issues: (a) CA erred in holding that RTC-Quezon City had territorial jurisdiction; (b) CA erred in admitting and relying on Del Rosario’s affidavit; (c) CA erred in sustaining private complainant’s personality to appeal a criminal case.
- Respondents’ positions: Trinidad maintained he resided in Quezon City at the time of publication and that efforts were made to present Del Rosario; the OSG urged dismissal of the petition (Rule 45 is for questions of law), asserted venue was properly laid through supplemental affidavit during PI, and argued the public prosecutor properly filed the notice of appeal, with OSG representation beginning at the appellate level.
Issues:
- Whether the RTC of Quezon City had territorial jurisdiction/venue over the libel case under Article 360 of the Revised Penal Code, considering the allegations (or lack thereof) in the Information.
- Whether the CA erred in admitting and relying upon (a) Trinidad’s supplemental affidavit filed during preliminary investigation and (b) the Del Rosario affidavit attached to a supplemental motion for reconsideration, to cure the jurisdictional defect.
- Whether the private and public prosecutors had the requisite personality to file the notice of appeal in the RTC, vis-à-vis the role of the Office of the Solicitor General in criminal appeals.
Ruling:
- (Subscriber-Only)
Ratio:
- (Subscriber-Only)
Doctrine:
- (Subscriber-Only)