G.R. No. L-64 - People vs. Moreno

Miguel M. Moreno, originally serving sentence at the San Ramon Penal Colony in Zamboanga, was in custody at the outbreak of war.
During the Japanese occupation, he befriended and gained the confidence of the Japanese naval authorities, which resulted in his release from prison.
He was subsequently appointed as Captain of a semi-military organization known as Kaigun Jeutay, composed of Filipinos and sponsored by the Japanese Navy.
On October 23, 1944, Moreno was further designated as section commander of the San Ramon Penal Colony with full supervisory and control powers over the institution and its vicinity.

On November 23, 1944, a unit of Moreno’s soldiers forcibly removed two young daughters from the house of Paciano de los Santos.
The following day, after Paciano de los Santos arrived at the penal colony, he was confined to a cell by Moreno’s order.
On the night of December 1, 1944, Moreno convened a meeting with prison officials and employees at the house of P. D. Dellosa (the Assistant Superintendent), during which he arrogantly announced his willingness to execute Paciano de los Santos the next day.
Moreno directed Gregorio Magalit, a prisoner employee, to prepare a grave for the intended execution and to draft a formal memorandum as evidence of the planned act.
On the morning of December 2, 1944, Paciano de los Santos was taken, with his hands tied, to a designated area known as the Fishery Division.
There, Moreno ordered the victim to kneel beside the prepared grave and then, wielding a Japanese sabre with both hands, hacked de los Santos’ head and subsequently kicked his body into the grave.

Moreno admitted in his testimony that he killed Paciano de los Santos exactly as the prosecution witnesses described.
He stated that upon his arrival the victim was already arranged for execution by four Japanese officers and several prison guards, and that he carried out the killing following instructions he had received.
Moreno claimed that he acted under the orders of Japanese naval officers (mentioning Captain Susuki, Commander Tanigawa, and Major Sasaki) despite the absence of corroborative evidence of any written order.

Moreno was tried by the Court of First Instance of Zamboanga, where he was found guilty of murder with the aggravating circumstances of premeditation and cruelty, and was sentenced to death along with an order to indemnify the heirs of the deceased.
Several issues were raised regarding trial procedures:

The timing of the trial after arraignment without the statutory two-day preparation period.
The absence of a preliminary investigation by the municipal judge or fiscal despite statutory requirements.
The alleged failure to compel the attendance of defense witnesses by subpoena, even though subpoenas had been issued.

The defendant’s sole defense was that he acted under orders by Japanese naval authorities, a claim that was unsupported by evidence and contradictory in his own testimony.

Whether the defendant’s statutory right to at least two days to prepare for his trial was violated by having his case tried the same day as his arraignment.
Whether convicting the defendant without a preliminary investigation (which he waived) was erroneously accomplished in violation of his due process rights.
Whether the failure (or alleged failure) to compel the attendance of defense witnesses by subpoena affected the fairness of the trial.
Whether Moreno’s claimed defense—that he was following orders from Japanese naval officers—constitutes a valid legal justification to exonerate him from murder, considering both the credibility and legality of the order.