Benjamin Salvosa and Baguio Colleges Foundation VS The Intermediate Appellate Court, Et al G.R.

No 70458

Legal Issue: Whether or not petitioners can be held solidarity liable with Jimmy B. Abon for damages under Article 2180 of the Civil Code Facts: Jimmy B. Abon, a commerce student of Baguio Colleges Foundation (BCF) and an armorer of the BCF ROTC unit, was prosecuted and convicted of the crime of homicide for shooting Napoleon Castro, also a student of BCF, on March 3, 1977 around 8:00pm in the parking area of BCF. Heirs of Napoleon filed for damages against Jimmy B. Abon, Benjamin Salvosa (President and Chairman of the Board of BCF), and Baguio Colleges Foundation, Inc. After hearing, trial court ordered defendants, jointly and severally, to pay private respondents for damages. Ruling: No. Petitioners cannot be solidarity liable with Jimmy B. Abon for damages resulting from his acts. Reason: Article 2180 states teachers or heads of establishments of arts and trades shall be liable for damages caused by their pupils and students or apprentices, so long as they remain in their custody. In the case at bar, Jimmy B. Abon was no longer in custody of the school since he was not attending any class or school function at the time of the shooting incident. By simply being in the premises of their school does not necessarily mean that they are under the care of the institution. Since Jimmy B. Abon is considered not at attendance in school, it is not necessary to raise the issue of Art. 2180.

Policy: Academic and non-academic institutions cannot simply be held liable for offenses committed by their students. With this law, they, too, become unfortunate victim of such acts because sometimes these kinds of accidents go beyond their control. Schools are to implement laws and regulations to keep their students safe and just like in a society, rules and regulations too are implemented; only difference is, in a society, when a person performs a criminal act, it is he who pays the price not the society.