Case Digest (G.R. No. 5275)
Facts:
The United States, Plaintiff and Appellee, vs. Alejandro Bautista, Defendant and Appellant. G.R. No. 5275. December 09, 1909. The Supreme Court En Banc, Elliott, J., writing for the Court.The appellant, Alejandro Bautista, was prosecuted under section 315 of Act No. 355 (the Philippine Customs Administrative Act) for offering or promising money to a government customs secret-service employee to permit the landing and importation of opium concealed aboard the steamer Tean. A demurrer to the information, which argued that the pleading failed to state facts constituting a public offense (specifically that the officer was on duty and had jurisdiction), was overruled. Bautista was tried, convicted as charged, sentenced to one year’s imprisonment at Bilibid and fined P500 (with subsidiary imprisonment in case of insolvency), and judgment was entered against him.
After conviction the defendant filed a motion to reopen the case to permit the introduction of what he called newly discovered evidence; that motion was denied. The trial court’s denial and the conviction were brought to the Supreme Court on appeal. The principal contentions on appeal were (1) that the information was fatally defective because it did not allege that the employee (Jacinto Escolastico) was on duty or had jurisdiction at the time the bribe was offered, and (2) that the trial court abused its discretion in refusing to reopen the case to receive newly discovered evidence that, according to the defendant, tended to show the opium found in the bay did not come from the Tean.
The operative factual account at trial showed that on the night of February 12–13, 1909, Jacinto Escolastico, a customs secret-service agent, was performing anti-smuggling duties in Manila Bay when he found a banca and its three occupants hidden near the steamer Tean. Upon discovery, the defendant approached Escolastico and offered P250 if Escolastico would permit him to obtain opium said to be stowed in the bow storeroom of the Tean; Bautista later admitted in the presence of Joseph Keith that he knew opium was on the Tean and that he had arranged with a secret-service agent to allow him to land it. No opium was found aboard the Tean during its stay, but four large tins of opium were found ...(Subscriber-Only)
Issues:
- Was the information sufficient to charge an offense under section 315 of Act No. 355, notwithstanding the absence of an express allegation that the officer was on duty or had jurisdiction?
- Did the trial court abuse its discretion in denying the defendant’s motion to reopen the case to admit new...(Subscriber-Only)
Ruling:
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Ratio:
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Doctrine:
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