Title
People vs. Domended y Velasco
Case
G.R. No. 137564
Decision Date
Mar 30, 2001
Dominador Domended, accused of raping 15-year-old Lina Casupang in 1997, was convicted despite claims of consent and extortion. Medical evidence and Lina’s credible testimony affirmed guilt.
rape
conviction
reclusion perpetua

Case Summary (G.R. No. 137564)

Factual Background

The record established that on 24 July 1997 the accused fetched Lina from her home in Pangasinan to work as a helper in his carinderia in Marikina City. Lina worked daily from 6:00 in the morning to 7:00 in the evening as a dishwasher, and on Saturdays she performed household chores at the accused’s residence in Empress Subdivision, Marikina City. On 30 July 1997, at around midnight, Lina and the accused were preparing to leave the carinderia after the accused’s extended work due to his plumbing sideline. They rode a tricycle, and while Lina and the accused were still on board, the accused, described as smelling of alcohol, held Lina’s shoulder and kissed her on the lips after which Lina resisted by pushing him away.

Upon reaching Empress Subdivision, they alighted near a waiting shed. The area was dark and deserted, and the street was wet from a drizzle. Without warning, the accused pulled Lina across the street to a vacant lot. Lina attempted to shout for help, but her cries were drowned by the rain. When a car passed by and a chance for assistance presented itself, the accused covered her mouth. The accused then dragged Lina to the ground, but she managed to stand up. Still, the accused overpowered her, pinned her down, forcibly removed her shorts and panty, raised her t-shirt and bra, and allegedly penetrated her genitalia. Lina testified that the accused inserted his penis into her vagina while kissing her intimate parts. She further narrated that she retaliated by biting the attacker’s lips and that she was cowed into submission only when he tried to strangle her. She also testified that the accused repeatedly inserted his finger into her vagina; and that when he insisted on inserting his penis, the organ would not fully cooperate due to a lack of a full erection. Despite this, Lina described helplessness and whimpering in vain defiance. She admitted that her earlier affidavit reflected inaccuracies regarding whether the accused succeeded in penetration, explaining that she lied in her affidavit because she was afraid of the accused’s moral ascendancy over her, while maintaining that her trial testimony more closely reflected what transpired on the night of the incident.

The prosecution also relied on corroboration from within the accused’s household. Criselda Alano, sister-in-law of the accused and a member of the Domended household, testified that at approximately 1:30 in the early morning of 31 July 1997, she was awakened by someone knocking at the door and that she saw Lina with the accused. She observed that Lina’s clothing was dirty and her appearance disheveled, which prompted her to ask if something was wrong. Lina eventually told her that she had been raped by the accused. Lina narrated to Criselda how the accused dragged her to a vacant lot, repeatedly kissed her, and tried to insert his organ into her vagina but could not penetrate because his penis was soft. Criselda and Lina went to the police station the following morning, leading to the arrest of the accused.

On the medical aspect, Dr. Emmanuel Reyes, medico-legal officer of the PNP crime laboratory, conducted a genital and extra-genital examination. The medico-legal report indicated: moderate growth of pubic hair; labia majora full, convex and slightly gaping; labia minora in between; an elastic, fleshy type hymen with a deep fresh healing laceration at the three o’clock position and a shallow fresh healing laceration at the nine o’clock position; strong resistance to introduction of the examining index finger and a virgin-sized vaginal speculum; a narrow vaginal canal with prominent rugenities; and a cervix of normal size, color and consistency with menstrual blood coming from the external. The trial court treated these findings as supportive of penetration or forceful sexual assault.

Defense Version and Other Testimony Offered by the Accused

The accused denied the rape and presented a different account of events. He testified that on 24 July 1997 he went to Pangasinan to fetch Lina, who he was hiring as extra help for his canteen while his wife was in Hongkong. On 30 July 1997, at about 11:00 in the evening, he went to his carinderia to close for the day and found Lina all by herself. They boarded a tricycle and alighted near a waiting shed outside Empress Subdivision, where the accused’s house was situated. In that place, the accused claimed that Lina appeared reluctant to go home and told him she feared Criselda, whom she described as badgering her about a supposed relationship. The accused said he placed his arm around Lina when she cried, that Lina embraced him and leaned on his chest, and that they kissed and caressed each other in a vacant lot at the back of a nearby store. He claimed he touched Lina’s private part but lost interest when he sensed she was wearing a sanitary napkin. They then returned home, and the accused asserted that Criselda opened the door for them after peeping through the jalousie. The next morning, he said he found two policemen already in the house inviting him to the police station due to a complaint against him.

Two other witnesses were presented in support of the accused’s narrative and insinuations. Yolanda Alano, another sister-in-law, doubted Lina’s allegations and claimed she caught Lina and the accused kissing when she peeped through a window. Josephine Domended, the accused’s wife while in Hongkong, narrated that Criselda informed her through telex that the accused was detained for attempting to rape their maid. She stated that through Criselda she spoke to Mang Romy, identified as Lina’s father, who threatened to pursue the case unless Josephine would produce P150,000.00, which Josephine refused because she was in her second week as an overseas worker. Josephine also claimed that a smaller amount of P70,000.00 was demanded through a letter from the complainant. The accused argued that this demonstrated that the complaint was motivated by financial considerations or by Criselda’s ill-feelings.

Trial Court’s Assessment of Credibility and Liability

In convicting the accused, the trial court sustained the credibility of Lina and rejected the accused’s denials and the theory that the complaint was fabricated. It gave weight to Lina’s immediate report of the incident to the police authorities. It also considered Criselda’s testimony that Lina’s clothes and body appeared wet and dirty when she arrived with the accused in the early morning of 31 July 1997. The trial court further relied on the medico-legal findings showing fresh healing lacerations at the hymen and other genital characteristics consistent with trauma. It dismissed as unworthy of belief the accused’s contention that the charge was an extortion scheme, noting that the documentary record showed that the offer to settle came from the wife of the accused and that negotiations, even if any, were conducted after the commission of the crime. The trial court ultimately found the accused guilty of rape, imposed reclusion perpetua, and ordered the payment of P50,000.00 as civil indemnity.

Issues Raised on Appeal

On appeal, the accused challenged the conviction by asserting that Lina’s testimony contained material inconsistencies, including an alleged admission that she lied in court. He also maintained that Lina’s family, through Criselda, sought monetary gain in exchange for the accused’s freedom, and he alleged that the complaint was filed instigated by Criselda due to personal animosity. He further insisted that Lina consented to the sexual contact and invoked a “sweetheart” theory to characterize their relationship as consensual.

Court’s Ruling on the Credibility Challenge and the Nature of Penetration

The Court rejected the accused’s first line of attack. It acknowledged that Lina’s prior sworn statement contained contrary assertions, particularly that the accused’s penis was soft and did not enter the vagina, while at trial she stated that the accused had inserted his penis into her vagina for a substantial period. The Court recognized that affidavits executed ex parte are generally inferior in probative value to testimony given in open court. It reasoned that the trial court properly credited Lina’s in-court testimony, given that Lina satisfactorily explained the inconsistency: she said she lied in her affidavit out of fear when her statement was taken and that she was no longer afraid when she testified. The Court therefore held that the trial court did not err in giving greater evidentiary weight to the trial testimony.

The Court also found the accused’s effort to isolate a segment of Lina’s statements misleading. It observed that the accused had extracted only a portion of her testimony and presented it out of context, which resulted in an incomplete reading of her overall account. The Court pointed to Lina’s direct testimony describing penetration and the sequence of acts: she stated that the accused inserted his penis into her vagina, that it was painful, that she told him her vagina was painful, and that after removal he inserted his finger thereafter. The Court also referred to her cross-examination exchanges where Lina maintained that even if the accused’s penis was soft at certain moments, his penis and fingers still were inserted, and that the accused’s failure to have full erection did not negate the criminality of the act. It stressed the legal principle that the slightest penetration of the lips of the female organ or of the labia of the pudendum constitutes rape.

In sustaining conviction, the Court further addressed the accused’s claim that a soft penis could not penetrate. It held that, for purposes of rape, a flaccid penis could cause the degree of injury relevant to the offense. It reasoned that Lina’s testimony supported that the penis touched the middle portion of her vagina and entered the labia of her pudendum despite the lack of a full erection, and it added that the medico-legal findings of fresh la

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