Case Digest (G.R. No. 250219)
Facts:
XXX, Petitioner, vs. People of the Philippines, Respondent, G.R. No. 250219, March 01, 2023, First Division, Hernando, J., writing for the Court.The respondent is the People of the Philippines; the private complainant (the victim-wife) and her minor child are identified in the record by initials pursuant to court protocol. Petitioner was charged by Information dated January 29, 2016, in Criminal Case No. 194‑V‑16 of the Regional Trial Court (RTC), with violation of Section 5(i) of Republic Act No. 9262 (Anti‑Violence Against Women and Their Children Act of 2004) for allegedly depriving his minor child of financial support and abandoning the complainant and the child, causing psychological and emotional anguish.
Petitioner moved to quash the Information and the arrest warrant, alleging denial of due process and seeking a preliminary investigation; the RTC granted the motion and directed the prosecutor to reinvestigate. After reinvestigation the prosecutor found probable cause and the case proceeded: petitioner was arraigned (pleaded not guilty) and trial on the merits followed. Petitioner filed a demurrer to evidence which the RTC denied.
The prosecution presented testimony (including that of the complainant, AAA, and the minor child, BBB) and documentary proof of marriage and the child’s birth. Evidence established petitioner’s alleged infidelity and cohabitation with another woman (CCC), text exchanges intended to humiliate AAA, and the removal of the child from petitioner’s custody; BBB testified emotionally about her father’s affair. Petitioner contended he had custody prior to AAA’s departure abroad, denied financial deprivation, and claimed AAA alienated the child.
The RTC found petitioner guilty of psychological violence under Section 5(i) of RA 9262, characterizing his conduct as emotional and psychological abandonment, and imposed an indeterminate sentence (prision correccional to prision mayor), a P100,000 fine, and mandatory psychological counseling. Petitioner appealed to the Court of Appeals (CA), which in a January 31, 2019 Decision in CA‑G.R. CR No. 40971 affirmed the conviction but modified the penalty to a...(Pro-only)
Issues:
- Was petitioner denied due process or fair notice because the Information did not explicitly allege "psychological violence" but only alleged deprivation of financial support and abandonment?
- Were the elements of Section 5(i) of RA 9262 proved beyond reasonable doubt so as to sustain petitioner’s conviction f...(Pro-only)
Ruling:
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Ratio:
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Doctrine:
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