Case Digest (G.R. No. 110554)
Facts:
People of the Philippines v. Romy Sagun @ Pokpok, G.R. No. 110554, February 19, 1999, Supreme Court Second Division, Quisumbing, J., writing for the Court.The Provincial Prosecutor filed an information on September 25, 1991 in the Regional Trial Court (RTC), Branch 32, Cabarroguis, Quirino (presided by Judge Carlos T. Aggabao), charging Romy Sagun @ Pokpok with rape allegedly committed on or about midnight of November 5, 1990 against Maritess A. Marzo. Arraignment was held June 25, 1992, where accused pleaded not guilty and trial followed.
At trial the prosecution offered the complainant’s testimony and the medico-legal examination. Maritess testified that at about midnight of November 5, 1990 she was awakened by footsteps and that her neighbor Sagun entered her boarding house, threatened her with a bolo, put the bolo at her head and neck, removed her skirt and panty, mounted her, inserted his organ and gyrated about five minutes before leaving. She did not immediately reveal the rape because of the death threat; she informed her landlord the following morning and submitted to a medical examination on November 6, 1990. The examining physician, Dr. Moises Lazaro, testified to partial penetration (about 1–1.5 cm), with the hymen intact.
Accused denied the charge, testifying that he had been drinking, entered the boarding house to visit and talk with the complainant, sat four meters away, and left after being warned to go; he denied any threats, undressing, or sexual intercourse. The RTC, in a decision dated May 10, 1993, convicted Sagun of rape, sentenced him to reclusion perpetua, ordered in...(Subscriber-Only)
Issues:
- Did the trial court commit grave abuse of discretion in crediting the testimony of the private complainant?
- Do the medico-legal findings of an intact hymen, the alleged slight penetration, and the victim’s delayed reporting and conduct thereafter negate a co...(Subscriber-Only)
Ruling:
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Ratio:
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Doctrine:
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