Case Digest (G.R. No. 129433)
Facts:
People of the Philippines v. Primo Campuhan y Bello, G.R. No. 129433, March 30, 2000, the Supreme Court En Banc, Bellosillo, J., writing for the Court.On 25 April 1996, at about 4:00 p.m., four‑year‑old Crysthel Pamintuan was found in her bedroom with her pajamas and panty removed and respondent Primo Campuhan allegedly kneeling before her with his short pants down; Crysthel and her mother Ma. Corazon P. Pamintuan testified that Primo was forcing his penis into the child’s vagina. Corazon rushed upstairs, saw the scene, boxed the accused and called relatives and neighbors who apprehended him. A medico‑legal examination of Crysthel showed no external genital injuries; the hymen was intact and the orifice measured 0.5 cm.
Primo denied the charge, testifying that the child pulled him down while playing and that no sexual act occurred; he also contended that Corazon fabricated the story. The trial court (Regional Trial Court, Br. 170, Malabon; Decision by Judge Benjamin T. Antonio) found him guilty of statutory rape on 27 May 1997, sentenced him to death under R.A. No. 7659 (because the offended party was below seven years old), and awarded damages to the victim.
The case reached the Supreme Court by automatic review under Article 335 of the Revised Penal Code as amended by R.A. No. 7659. The Court considered the...(Subscriber-Only)
Issues:
- Did the prosecution prove beyond reasonable doubt that consummated statutory rape occurred (i.e., that there was carnal knowledge/penetration) so as to sustain the conviction and the imposition of the death penalty under R.A. No. 7659?
- If consummation was not proven, what is the proper c...(Subscriber-Only)
Ruling:
- (Subscriber-Only)
Ratio:
- (Subscriber-Only)
Doctrine:
- (Subscriber-Only)