A.M. No. MTJ-07-1682 - Barbero vs. Dumlao

On November 28, 1995, at approximately 5:30 in the afternoon in Barangay Esperanza, Ormoc City, the accused Marcelo Bates, together with his son Marcelo Bates, Jr., was involved in the killing of Jose Boholst.
The prosecution alleges that the accused, along with a co-conspirator, committed the crime with treachery, evident premeditation, and the use of long bolos, attacking Jose Boholst in a manner that left him with multiple fatal wounds.

Around 2:00 in the afternoon, Edgar Fuentes, Simon Fuentes, and Jose Boholst left Barangay Esperanza to deliver copra to Fely Rodado at Barangay Green Valley.
After their delivery around 5:00 in the afternoon, while returning via a trail near Carlito Bates’ residence, Carlito suddenly emerged from a banana plantation aiming his firearm at Jose Boholst.
During the ensuing struggle, a shot was fired that hit Carlito, causing him to fall, after which Marcelo Bates and his son emerged wielding bolos and proceeded to hack Jose Boholst repeatedly.
Concepcion Boholst, the victim’s wife, arrived at the scene and witnessed Marcelo and his son attacking Jose, pleading with them to stop; however, her appeals were ignored.

The defense claimed that Marcelo Bates initially inflicted a single hack wound as an act of self-defense when confronted with an escalating altercation.
According to the defense, after a dispute near Carlito Bates’ house (about twenty meters away from Marcelo’s house), Jose Boholst shot Carlito, prompting Marcelo Bates to approach with the intent to aid his fallen brother.
The defense asserted that when Jose fired at Marcelo, he evaded the shot and retaliated with further hacking; however, Marcelo’s actions after Carlito was already dead were presented as excessive and not justified by self-defense.
The defense also highlighted discrepancies in the eyewitness testimonials and raised issues regarding the credibility of certain prosecution witnesses.

The evidence included the Death Certificate, Autopsy Report, and various testimonies from prosecution witnesses (Edgar Fuentes, Concepcion Boholst) and defense witnesses (including Ponciano Sano and the accused’s own testimony).
During arraignment, Marcelo Bates pleaded not guilty.
On June 4, 1999, the Regional Trial Court of Ormoc City convicted Marcelo Bates for murder, basing its decision on the prosecution’s evidence, and sentenced him to suffer forty years of reclusion perpetua with the mitigation of voluntary surrender.
Marcelo Bates subsequently appealed, raising several errors regarding the assessment of self-defense, the credibility of the prosecution witnesses, and the appreciation of treachery as an aggravating circumstance as well as mitigating circumstances of passion and obfuscation.

Whether the trial court committed reversible error in not giving exculpatory weight to the self-defense plea raised by Marcelo Bates.
Whether the trial court erred in giving full credence to the prosecution witnesses despite alleged inconsistencies in their testimonies.
Whether the trial court improperly appreciated the qualifying circumstance of treachery without sufficient evidence establishing that the accused committed the crime in a manner that left the victim no opportunity to defend himself.
Whether the trial court should have considered mitigating circumstances such as passion and obfuscation in favor of the accused, particularly in light of the circumstances following the initial altercation.