Case Digest (G.R. No. L-36987-88)
Facts:
The People of the Philippines v. Pedro Catacutan y Taruc, G.R. Nos. L-36987-88, September 28, 1984, the Supreme Court En Banc, Abad Santos, J., writing for the Court.The accused, Pedro Catacutan (alias “Pedro Duling”), was charged before the defunct Circuit Criminal Court of Manila with murder (Criminal Case No. 1261) for the killing of Ligaya Santos, and with frustrated murder (later treated as attempted murder) (Criminal Case No. 1262) for the shooting of Renato Licup on August 22, 1971. The informations alleged that Catacutan, together with two unidentified companions, shot the victims at night, employing treachery and with intent to kill.
At trial, the court found Catacutan guilty of murder qualified by treachery in No. 1261 and guilty as principal of attempted murder qualified by treachery in No. 1262. The trial court declined to characterize the offense as nocturnal (nocturnity) because the scene was well lighted and there was no proof nighttime was purposely chosen; it did find recidivism, because the accused admitted a prior conviction for murder and frustrated murder (1963) and that he was a parolee at the time. The trial court sentenced him to death for No. 1261 (with indemnity, moral and exemplary damages) and to an indeterminate term for No. 1262.
Criminal Case No. 1261 was forwarded to the Supreme Court for review pursuant to the Rules of Court (Rule 122, Sec. 9) because the death penalty had been imposed; Criminal Case No. 1262 had been appealed to the Court of Appeals, but the Supreme Court asserted jurisdiction over it as it arose out of the same occurrence that gave rise to the death-penalty case (Judiciary Act of 1948, Sec. 17) and thus reviewed both cases together.
The prosecution’s case relied on eyewitness testimony (Leticia Santos, Ligaya Castillo, Renato Licup, Federico Bernal) who positively identified the appellant as the shooter, a police investigation report, and medico-legal evidence including an autopsy establishing that Ligaya Santos died of a through-and-through gunshot wound to the head. The defense claimed instead that the appellant had been a participant in the block rosary procession and that the group led by Romeo Santos ambushed them; the appellant presented no corroborating witnesses and did not file a police complaint. The accused was arrested a year after the incident.
The Supreme Court affirmed the trial court’s co...(Subscriber-Only)
Issues:
- Was the evidence sufficient to sustain the convictions for murder (Criminal Case No. 1261) and attempted murder (Criminal Case No. 1262)?
- Was treachery properly found as a qualifying circumstance in the murder and attempted murder convictions?
- Should the death penalty imposed in Criminal Cas...(Subscriber-Only)
Ruling:
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Ratio:
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Doctrine:
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