PEOPLE OF THE PHILIPPINES, vs. ELISEO MARTINADO y AGUILLON, HERMOGENES MARTINADO y AGUILLON and JOHN DOE, alias "ROLLY"s.
- G.R. Number: G.R. No. 92020
- Promulgated: 1992-10-19
- Ponente: Davide, Jr., J.
Doctrine
To sustain robbery with homicide, the robbery itself must be proven as conclusively as any other essential element of the crime.
Escape from confinement bars an accused from claiming the benefits of the Indeterminate Sentence Law.
Facts
Branch 124, RTC of Kalookan City convicted Eliseo and Hermogenes Martinado of robbery with homicide in Criminal Case No. C-27858; the RTC sentenced each to reclusion perpetua and ordered indemnity and return of stolen property.
This Court first had to resolve the propriety of the appeal insofar as accused Eliseo Martinado was concerned.
The Court found that the robbery element was not proven as required for robbery with homicide and thus modified the conviction to homicide under Article 249 of the RPC.
Because Eliseo had escaped from confinement, he was denied benefits of the Indeterminate Sentence Law; Hermogenes was given ISL benefits subject to conditions for credit of preventive imprisonment.
Issues
Whether the robbery element was proven sufficiently to sustain a conviction for robbery with homicide.
Whether the accused are entitled to the benefits of the Indeterminate Sentence Law.
Whether the appeal by Eliseo Martinado was proper.
Ruling
The Court modified the RTC decision: both accused convicted of homicide (Art. 249, RPC) instead of robbery with homicide because the robbery element was not sufficiently proven; the Decision otherwise affirmed.
Hermogenes was sentenced under the Indeterminate Sentence Law (with credit for preventive imprisonment if conditions met); Eliseo was denied ISL benefits due to escape and given a definite term of 17 years, 4 months, and 1 day reclusion temporal (maximum).
The indemnity for the death of the deceased was increased from P30,000.00 to P50,000.00.
Keywords
G.R. No. 92020, robbery with homicide, Article 294 of the Revised Penal Code, Reclusion Perpetua, indemnify the heirs, Article 29 of the Revised Penal Code, promulgating judgment in absentia, Section 6, Rule 120 of the Rules of Court, People vs. Mapalao, right to appeal, Section 8, Rule 124 of the 1985 Rules of Criminal Procedure, waiver of right to appeal, no retroactive effect (laws), judicial decisions applying or interpreting laws, new doctrine should be applied prospectively, Article 1191 Civil Code, murder (crime), information (pleading), judgment of conviction, accused