Case Digest (G.R. No. L-46397)
Facts:
People of the Philippines v. Antonio Dela Cruz, Hernando Deo, Reynaldo Arnaldo, Virgilio Baluyot and Edgardo Marino, G.R. No. L-46397. May 16, 1983, the Supreme Court En Banc, Vasquez, J., writing for the Court.The five appellants, Antonio dela Cruz, Hernando Deo, Reynaldo Arnaldo, Virgilio Baluyot and Edgardo Marino, were charged with murder in the Circuit Criminal Court of Rizal (Criminal Case No. CCC-VII-1884). At arraignment, conducted pursuant to Section 1, Rule 116 (in relation to Rule 118) of the Rules of Court, they pleaded guilty with the assistance of appointed counsel. Applying the doctrine in Ricalde v. Villaluz and Epifanio Flores, the trial court nonetheless required the prosecution to present evidence to establish the circumstances of the crime.
The prosecution presented extrajudicial confessions by each accused (Exhibits A–E with subparts), necropsy report and death certificate (Exhibit F), and weapon sketches matched to the actual improvised weapons (Exhibits A‑3 to E‑4). The trial court found that on or about March 8, 1976, while confined in the New Bilibid Prison and having conspired to kill a member of the rival GIG gang, the appellants, armed with improvised weapons, stabbed and killed Mabini Garachico. The court noted that the accused were serving sentences at the time, and that most (except Marino) were then already under sentence of death. Based on the guilty pleas and the prosecution's evidence, the trial court found the appellants guilty of murder and sentenced each to death, ordered civil indemnity and damages, and imposed costs.
Counsel de oficio filed a brief for the appellants but raised no formal assignments of error, acknowledging inability to find a legal...(Subscriber-Only)
Issues:
- Was the conviction of the appellants for murder properly sustained on the basis of their guilty pleas and the prosecution's evidence?
- Should the death penalty imposed on the appellants be maintained, considering the circumstances surrounding the crime and the penit...(Subscriber-Only)
Ruling:
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Ratio:
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Doctrine:
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