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SERENO, CJ.,
Chairperson,
- versus - LEONARDO-DE CASTRO,
BERSAMIN,
PEREZ, and
PERLAS-BERNABE, JJ.
DECISION
For Our consideration is an appeal from the Decision 1 dated May 23,
2012 of the Court of Appeals in CA-G.R. CR.-H.C. No. 04596, which
affirmed the Decision2 dated June 24, 2010 of the Regional Trial Court
(RTC), Camiling, Tarlac, Branch 68, in Criminal Case No. 06-93, finding
accused-appellant Adrian Guting y Tomas guilty of the crime of Parricide
under Article 246 of the Revised Penal Code.
Rollo, pp. 2-11; penned by Associate Justice Jose C. Reyes, Jr. with Associate Justices Priscilla J.
Baltazar-Padilla and Agnes Reyes-Carpio, concurring.
2
CA rol/o, pp. 12-16; penned by Presiding Judge Jose S. Vallo.
Records, p. 1.
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DECISION 2 G.R. No. 205412
without danger to the person of said accused, the result of which attack
was that said victim received multiple stab wounds on his body which
directly caused his instantaneous death.
Police Officer (PO) I Fidel Torre (Torre) testified that on the rainy
afternoon of July 30, 2005, at around 5:00 o'clock, he and POI Alexis
Macusi (Macusi) were standing in front of the Camiling Police Station when
accused-appellant, all wet from .the rain and with a bladed weapon in his
hand, suddenly approached them and told them that he had stabbed his
father. Hearing accused-appellant's statement, POI Torre immediately got
the bladed weapon from accused-appellant and turned it over to PO I Macusi
for proper disposition. 5
Id. at 11.
TSN, June 5, 2008, pp. 3-4.
6
TSN, February 7, 2008, pp. 3-8.
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DECISION 3 G.R. No. 205412
mention to POI Macusi that it was the knife he used in stabbing Jose. All
that accused-appellant said was, "Sinaksak ko po yang tatay ko! Napatay ko
na pol" POI Macusi also admitted that he did not request for the
examination of the knife because it was clean; any trace or stain of blood on
it would have been washed away by the rains at that time. PO I Macusi was
further questioned as to why he did not put into writing accused-appellant's
admission that he killed his father, and POI Macusi explained that it escaped
his mind as he was still new at the job then and he was carried away by the
fast flow of events. 7
Flora conceded that she was not present when Jose, her husband, was
killed by accused-appellant, their son. Flora only learned of the stabbing
incident and accused-appellant's surrender from the police officers of the
Camiling Police Station. Flora declared that she spent for the wake and
burial of Jose and that Jose, who was a tricycle driver, had been earning
around P200.00 a day at the time of his death. 8
The RTC promulgated its Decision on June 24, 20IO finding accused-
appellant guilty of Parricide based on his verbal admission that he killed his
father, Jose. Even assuming that accused-appellant's admission was
inadmissible in evidence, the RTC adjudged that the prosecution was still
able to establish sufficient circumstantial evidence which, taken collectively,
pointed to accused-appellant as the perpetrator of the brutal killing of his
father. The dispositive portion of the RTC judgment reads:
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DECISION 4 G.R. No. 205412
II
III
Section 12, paragraphs 1 and 3, Article III (Bill of Rights) of the 1987
Constitution mandate that:
SEC. 12. (1) Any person under investigation for the commission of
an offense shall have the right to be informed of his right to remain silent
and to have competent and independent counsel preferably of his own
choice. If the person cannot afford the services of counsel, he must be
provided with one. These rights cannot be waived except in writing and in
the presence of counsel.
xx xx
II
Rollo, p. 10.
12
CA rollo, p. 29.
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DECISION 5 G.R. No. 205412
17
336 Phil. 91, 105-106 (1997).
18
Bon v. People, 464 Phil. 125, 138 (2004).
19
Peoplev. Sace, 631Phil.335, 348-349 (2010).
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DECISION 7 G.R. No. 205412
(b) The facts from which the inferences are derived are proven;
and
20
Belonghilot v. Hon. Angeles, 450 Phil. 265, 290 (2003).
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DECISION 8 G.R. No. 205412
Art. 246. Parricide. - Any person who shall kill his father, mother,
or child, whether legitimate or illegitimate, or any of his ascendants, or
descendants, or his spouse, shall be guilty of parricide and shall be
punished by the penalty of reclusion perpetua to death.
21
People v. Lorenzo, 310 Phil. 694, 714 (1995).
22
People v. Cipriano, 353 Phil. 22, 34-35 (1998).
23
People v. Dela Cruz, 626 Phil. 280, 288 (2010).
24
People v. Nelmida, G.R. No. 184500, September 11, 2012, 680 SCRA 386, 437.
25
People v. Tibon, 636 Phil. 521, 533 (2010).
26
People v. Nelmida, supra note 24 at 439.
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DECISION 9 G.R. No. 205412
The heirs are also entitled to damages for the loss of earning
capacity of the deceased Francisco Gealon. The fact that the prosecution
did not present documentary evidence to support its claim for damages for
loss of earning capacity of the deceased does not preclude recovery of said
damages. The testimony of the victim's wife, Delia Gealon, as to the
earning capacity of her husband Francisco Gealon sufficiently establishes
the basis for making such an award. It was established that Francisco
Gealon was 48 years old at the time of his death in 1991. His average
income was P200.00 a day. Hence, in accordance with the American
Expectancy Table of Mortality adopted in several cases decided by this
Court, the loss of his earning capacity is to be calculated as follows:
= 21.33 x 36,500.00
In the case at bar, Jose was 67 years old at the time of his death and
was earning a daily wage of P200.00 as a tricycle driver, which was below
the P252.00 to P263.50 minimum wage rate for non-agriculture under Wage
Order No. 11 dated June 16, 2005 for Region III. We take judicial notice
that there is no documentary evidence available to establish the daily earning
capacity of a tricycle driver. We thus compute the award of damages for the
loss of Jose's earning capacity as follows:
27
362 Phil. 305, 321 (1999).
28
People v. Dizon, 378 Phil. 261, 278 (1999).
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DECISION 10 G.R. No. 205412
8.67 x 36,500.00
P316,455.00
SO ORDERED.
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TERESITA J. LEONAiiffO-DE CASTRO
Associate Justice
WE CONCUR:
ESTELA M~~BERNABE
As~ociate Justice
CERTIFICATION