Case Digest (G.R. No. L-32213)
Facts:
Shariff Uddin y Sali v. People of the Philippines, G.R. No. 249588, November 23, 2020, Third Division, Inting, J., writing for the Court.Two criminal informations were filed in the Regional Trial Court (RTC) of xxxxxxxxxxx against petitioner: Criminal Case No. L-10872 charging violation of Section 5(b), Article III of Republic Act No. 7610 (RA 7610) for sexual abuse/lascivious conduct of a child, and Criminal Case No. L-10873 charging Attempted Murder under Article 248 in relation to Article 6 of the Revised Penal Code (RPC). Upon arraignment on March 8, 2016, petitioner pleaded not guilty; pre-trial and trial followed.
The prosecution presented the testimony of AAA (the victim), then 13 years old, who recounted that on February 20, 2016 at about 10:30 a.m. petitioner intercepted her on a road, pulled her into a forested area, touched her breasts, inserted his hand into her panty and touched her vagina, restrained her for some 35 minutes while warning her to be quiet, and then carried and threw her into a ravine about 25–30 meters below the road; vines prevented a fatal fall. Eyewitness Alvin Santos testified he saw petitioner carry and throw AAA into the cliff and later saw AAA injured; he alerted the police, who arrested petitioner. Medical examination showed old hymenal lacerations but no contemporaneous medical findings proving the alleged abrasions. The defense testified petitioner was at home caring for his child and denied the incidents; a second defense witness could not be located.
On July 4, 2018, the RTC (Branch 68) convicted petitioner of violation of Section 5(b), Article III of RA 7610 and Attempted Murder under Article 248 in relation to Article 6 RPC, finding AAA credible and that the prosecution proved guilt beyond reasonable doubt; it imposed indeterminate and determinate penalties and awarded civil, moral, exemplary damages, plus a fine. Petitioner appealed.
On June 14, 2019, the Court of Appeals (CA) in CA-G.R. CR No. 42179 affirmed the RTC’s factual findings and convictions but modified penalties and damages: it accepted that the proper nomenclature for the RA 7610 offense was Lascivious Conduct (citing People v. Caoili), adjusted the indeterminate penalty range for that offense, increased some damages (adding P50,000 civil indemnity and increasing exemplary damages), and modified the penalty for the attempted homicide/murder count. The CA denied petitioner’s motion for reconsideration on September 24, 2019.
Petitioner filed a Petition for Review on Certiorari under Ru...(Subscriber-Only)
Issues:
- Did the Court of Appeals err in affirming petitioner’s conviction for Lascivious Conduct under Section 5(b), Article III of RA 7610?
- Did the Court of Appeals err in affirming petitioner’s conviction for Attempted Murder under Article 248 in relation to Article 6 of the RPC (including the finding that abuse of superior stren...(Subscriber-Only)
Ruling:
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Ratio:
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Doctrine:
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