Title
Josue y Gonzales vs. People
Case
G.R. No. 199579
Decision Date
Dec 10, 2012
Josue shot Macario multiple times, claiming self-defense; court found intent to kill, convicted him of frustrated homicide, and awarded damages.
frustrated homicide
shooting
guilty verdict

Case Summary (G.R. No. 199579)

Factual Background

On the night of May 1, 2004, Armando Macario y Pineda was buying medicine near the petitioner's residence in Barrio Obrero, Tondo, Manila when the petitioner allegedly confronted him, shouted an accusation about painting the petitioner’s vehicle, and fired a .45 caliber pistol. The victim sustained three gunshot wounds: one in the right hand, one in the left elbow, and one entering the posterior chest and exiting anteriorly. Medical witnesses, including Dr. Casimiro Tiongson, Jr., and Dr. Edith Calalang, testified that metallic foreign bodies appeared on x-ray and that the wounds would have been fatal but for timely medical attendance. The prosecution presented eyewitness Ariel Villanueva and the victim’s wife, among others, who identified the petitioner as the assailant. The petitioner admitted firing the shots but asserted self-defense, claiming that he found the victim and others allegedly tampering with his jeepney battery, that the victim had a .38 revolver which jammed when fired, and that he fired in response. The petitioner’s son Rafael testified for the defense, and SPO4 Axelito Palmero testified that the petitioner later surrendered a .38 revolver allegedly belonging to the victim.

Procedural History

The petitioner was charged with frustrated homicide in Crim. Case No. 05-236299 and pleaded not guilty at arraignment. After pre-trial, trial on the merits was conducted. The RTC convicted the petitioner on October 22, 2009, sentenced him under the Indeterminate Sentence Law, and ordered indemnity for medical expenses of P32,214.25. The petitioner appealed to the Court of Appeals, which affirmed the conviction in a Decision dated June 30, 2011 and in a Resolution dated December 1, 2011. The petitioner filed a Petition for Review under Rule 45, Rules of Court before the Supreme Court, which resolved the matter on December 10, 2012.

Issues Presented

The principal issues were whether the prosecution overcame the presumption of innocence and proved beyond reasonable doubt the elements of frustrated homicide, whether the petitioner carried his burden to establish self-defense beyond reasonable doubt, and whether the sentences and damages imposed below were proper.

The Parties' Contentions

The petitioner maintained that the prosecution failed to overthrow the constitutional presumption of innocence and that he acted in self-defense. The petitioner asserted that the victim had attempted to shoot him with a .38 revolver which jammed and that he fired only to repel an unlawful aggression. The People argued that the evidence showed the petitioner intentionally fired a deadly weapon at an unarmed victim, that the victim sustained mortal wounds rendered nonfatal only by medical intervention, and that eyewitness and medical testimony established both intent to kill and infliction of fatal wounds.

Trial Court and Appellate Findings

The RTC credited the prosecution witnesses, found the petitioner guilty beyond reasonable doubt of frustrated homicide, and imposed an indeterminate sentence of six months and one day of prision correccional as minimum to eight years and one day of prision mayor as maximum, and ordered indemnity for actual medical expenses. The RTC rejected the defense contention that the surrendered .38 revolver was proven to belong to the victim. The Court of Appeals affirmed the RTC’s findings and disposition, giving weight to the trial court’s credibility assessments.

Supreme Court Ruling and Disposition

The Supreme Court denied the petition for review and affirmed the decisions of the Court of Appeals and the RTC with a modification: it ordered the petitioner to pay the offended party moral damages in the amount of P10,000.00 in addition to the actual damages previously awarded. The conviction for frustrated homicide, the sentence under the Indeterminate Sentence Law, and the award of actual damages were sustained.

Legal Basis and Reasoning

The Court emphasized that a petition under Rule 45 raises questions of law only and that factual determinations of the trial court, especially assessments of witness credibility, are entitled to great respect when affirmed by the Court of Appeals. The Court restated the elements of frustrated homicide as: (1) intent to kill manifested by use of a deadly weapon; (2) infliction of fatal or mortal wounds but noncompletion of death due to causes independent of the assailant’s will; and (3) absence of qualifying circumstances for murder under Article 248, Revised Penal Code. The Court found these elements established by the prosecution through eyewitness identification, the petitioner’s own admissions, and medical testimony of the nature and number of wounds. On self-defense, the Court applied the rule from People v. Mondigo that an accused who pleads self-defense admits the acts charged and bears the burden to prove beyond reasonable doubt (1) unlawful aggression by the victim, (2) reasonable necessity of the means employed to repel it, and (3) lack of sufficient provocation by the defender. The Court concluded that unlawful aggression was not proved because the victim was effectively unarmed at the material time, the petitioner was

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