G.R. No. 142873 - People vs. Salvador

On December 3, 1998, during the early afternoon around 2:00 o’clock, appellant Maximo Salvador allegedly raped his 14-year-old daughter, Merlyn Salvador.
The incident took place inside their family bedroom where the victim, having been instructed by her father to take a nap, awoke to find herself naked and under his unwanted embrace.
Salient details of the assault include:

The victim discovered her missing panty and skirt upon waking.
Her father embraced her, pinned down her hands, and inserted his erect penis into her vagina with repeated “pumping motions.”
The violent act was carried out in the presence of other siblings who were asleep in the same room.
Following the assault, the father threatened the victim, warning her not to disclose the incident under threat of killing her, her mother, and her siblings.
He later disposed of evidence by burning her stained panty.

In January 1999, the appellant allegedly attempted to commit sexual abuse on the victim once more, an incident which was interrupted when the victim shouted for help.
The cumulative abuse led the victim to leave her home and later confide in her Uncle Lando, choosing him over her mother due to her mother’s known affection for the appellant.
The abuse was eventually reported to the authorities by the victim, her mother, and Uncle Lando.

A medical examination conducted on the victim revealed the presence of old, healed lacerations at the 4 o’clock and 8 o’clock positions, which, despite being dated, corroborated her testimony regarding a past violent act.
On March 10, 1999, an Information (Criminal Case No. 99-336) was filed charging Maximo Salvador with qualified rape.
During his arraignment on May 6, 1999, appellant, represented by his counsel de oficio, pleaded not guilty.
A comprehensive trial ensued wherein the victim provided detailed testimony, including descriptions of the assault, her physical and emotional responses, and the threats issued by the appellant.
The trial court, after a meticulous evaluation of the evidence and the direct testimony of the victim, found the appellant guilty beyond reasonable doubt and imposed the supreme penalty of death.
The court also ordered the appellant to pay:

Civil indemnity of P75,000,
Moral damages of P50,000,
Exemplary damages of P25,000 (the latter being added upon modification during the appellate process).

The appellant argued that the prosecution failed to overcome the constitutional presumption of innocence.
He challenged the credibility of the victim’s testimony, contending that the details described defied ordinary human experience and were inherently incredible.
The appellant also criticized the medical findings, arguing that the presence of only old healed lacerations was insufficient evidence of recent penile penetration.
Additionally, he raised an alibi defense which, however, was not supported by any corroborative evidence.

Whether the prosecution was able to prove the guilt of the appellant beyond reasonable doubt despite the appellant’s reliance on the presumption of innocence.
Whether the victim’s testimony, replete with vivid details of the assault, was credible and should be given substantial weight.

Whether minor inconsistencies in the victim’s account, potentially attributable to her age and trauma, detract from its overall credibility.
Whether the description of simultaneous acts (embracing, pinning down, and inserting) is inherently incredible or consistent with the nature of a forcible sexual assault, especially involving a minor.

Whether the imposition of the death penalty was appropriate under the special circumstance that the victim was a minor and the perpetrator was her parent.
Whether the trial court erred in imposing the supreme penalty of death in a qualified rape case given the facts established during trial.

Whether the absence of fresh vaginal lacerations, with the medical examination showing only old healed tears, undermined the establishment of the crime of rape.
Whether the medical findings could be interpreted in a manner that conclusively refutes the occurrence of rape.