Title
People vs. XXX
Case
G.R. No. 205888
Decision Date
Aug 22, 2018
A father convicted of raping his daughter; her death precluded cross-examination, but her statements were admitted as res gestae, affirming guilt.
rape
witness testimonies
medical evidence

Case Summary (G.R. No. 205888)

Factual Background

The accused was charged by five separate Informations: one for Attempted Rape (CR No. F-02-03-A) alleging an incident of July 18, 1999 involving the accused and his then four-teen-year-old daughter, AAA; and four Informations for Rape (CR Nos. F-02-01-A, F-2001-171-A, F-02-02-A, F-2001-170-A) alleging multiple acts of sexual intercourse on April 8 and on April 15, 2001 against AAA, who was the accused’s daughter and was alleged to have been sixteen years old in the pleadings.

Trial and Death of the Victim

Upon arraignment, XXX pleaded not guilty to all charges and trial on the merits commenced. During the course of trial, the putative victim, AAA, died on January 4, 2003, before she could be cross-examined. The prosecution had presented direct examination of AAA but, upon motion by the defense and because she had not been cross-examined, the trial court ordered that her direct testimony be expunged from the records.

Victim’s Out-of-Court Statements as Recorded in Direct Testimony

The expunged direct testimony of AAA, as summarized by the trial court, recounted that on July 18, 1999 her father attempted anal intercourse but was unsuccessful; that on April 8, 2001 he raped her once; and that on April 15, 2001 he raped her repeatedly at about 7:00 p.m., 9:00 p.m., and 12:00 midnight, after which she left the house on the morning of April 16, 2001. Her statements also indicated threats by the accused not to reveal the acts to her mother.

Testimonies of EEE and Gelmie Calug

The prosecution presented other witnesses who testified to out-of-court declarations of AAA. EEE, an aunt, testified that AAA arrived at her house at noon on April 16, 2001, was crying and sad, and told her that her father had raped her on April 8 and on April 15, 2001 at 7:00 p.m., 9:00 p.m., and 12:00 midnight. Gelmie Calug, a later co-worker at a household where AAA labored, testified that on April 18, 2001 AAA told him she had been raped by her father on April 8, 15, and 16.

Proceedings and Ruling of the Regional Trial Court

The RTC found the accused guilty of three counts of Rape corresponding to the three incidents of April 15, 2001, and sentenced him to reclusion perpetua for each count with awards of P50,000 as civil indemnity and P50,000 as moral damages per count. The RTC acquitted the accused of the April 8, 2001 rape and the July 18, 1999 attempted rape for failure of the prosecution to prove guilt beyond reasonable doubt. The RTC expunged AAA’s direct testimony for lack of cross-examination and convicted primarily on the basis of res gestae utterances testified to by EEE and Gelmie Calug, while declining to recognize the special qualifying circumstance of filiation for lack of competent proof.

Appeal to the Court of Appeals

The accused appealed to the Court of Appeals, arguing principally that the testimonies of EEE and Gelmie Calug were inadmissible hearsay and that, absent AAA’s expunged testimony, guilt was not proven beyond reasonable doubt. The CA examined the res gestae claim and, on April 19, 2012, affirmed the RTC Decision in toto as to the three convictions for the April 15 incidents.

Issue on Appeal to the Supreme Court

The sole issue before the Supreme Court was whether the accused’s guilt for the three counts of Rape was proven beyond reasonable doubt, in particular whether the out-of-court statements of AAA as related by EEE and Gelmie Calug could be admitted as part of the res gestae exception to the hearsay rule.

Governing Law on Hearsay and Res Gestae

The Court reiterated the general rule that hearsay is inadmissible and the Constitutional right of an accused to confront and cross-examine witnesses — Section 14(2), Article III, 1987 Constitution and Section 1(f), Rule 115 — which justified the RTC’s expunction of AAA’s direct testimony. The Court applied Section 42, Rule 130 concerning statements that are admissible as part of the res gestae, and set out the requisite elements: (i) that the principal act be a startling occurrence; (ii) that the statements were made before the declarant had time to contrive a falsehood; and (iii) that the statements concern the occurrence and its immediate attending circumstances.

Application of Precedent and Factors for Spontaneity

Relying on its prior jurisprudence, notably People v. Estibal and People v. Manhuyod, Jr., the Court explained that the admissibility of res gestae utterances turns on spontaneity and the closeness in time, place, and circumstance between the event and the declaration. The Court enumerated relevant factors: the lapse of time between the act and the statement; the place where the statement was made; the condition of the declarant; intervening events; and the nature of the statement itself.

Supreme Court’s Analysis of EEE’s Testimony

Applying those factors, the Court found that EEE’s testimony reciting AAA’s revelation at noon on April 16, 2001 — approximately twelve hours after the April 15 nocturnal rapes — satisfied the spontaneity requirement. The Court observed that AAA arrived at her aunt’s house sad and crying, that the effect of the violation still dominated her mind, and that there was no intervening event which would have allowed deliberation or fabrication. The Court concluded that the utterances to EEE were so connected to the principal acts as to be part of the res gestae and therefore admissible.

Supreme Court’s Treatment of Gelmie Calug’s Testimony

By contrast, the Court found that the statements ascribed to AAA by Gelmie Calug on April 18, 2001, three days after the April 15 incidents, were too remote in time and occurred after a period during which AAA had resided and labored in other households. The Court held that the connection between event and declaration was broken and that those utterances could not properly be considered part of the res gestae.

Sufficiency of Evidence and Credibility Findings

Notwithstanding the expunction of AAA’s direct testimony and the exclusion of Calug’s cited utterances as res gestae, the Court held that the admissible testimony of EEE, when read together with the medico-legal findings and the totality of the evidence, established the element of carnal knowledge by force beyond reasonable doubt for the three nocturnal rapes of April 15, 2001. The Court deferred to the RTC’s credibility determinations, noting the absence of circumstances of weight and substance warranting reversal.

Rejection of Alibi Defense and Accused’s Denial

The Court affirmed the trial court’s rejection of XXX’s alibi defense and general denial as insufficiently corroborated. The Court reiterated the rule that an alibi must show physical impossibility of presence at the crime scene and be supported by strong, independent evidence; here, the accused’s testimony was uncertain, he failed to recall dates, and he presented no corroborating witnesses.

Disposition,

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