GR 126199; (December, 1999) (Digest)
G.R. No. 126199 December 8, 1999
PEOPLE OF THE PHILIPPINES, plaintiff-appellee, vs. ERNESTO SEVILLA, accused-appellant.
FACTS
The accused-appellant, Ernesto Sevilla, was charged with the incestuous rape of his 14-year-old daughter, Myra Sevilla. The prosecution alleged that on January 15, 1994, in Dasmarinas, Cavite, Sevilla, taking advantage of his wife’s hospitalization, sexually assaulted Myra in their one-room house while she was sleeping beside her younger brother. Myra testified that her father used force and intimidation, threatened to kill her and her family if she reported the incident, and had made sexual advances since she was six. She disclosed the rape to her mother upon her release from the hospital, leading to a medico-legal examination and a formal complaint.
The defense consisted solely of Sevilla’s denial. He claimed he was asleep at the time and suggested the complaint was instigated by a sister-in-law with whom he had a conflict. The trial court found Myra’s testimony credible, consistent, and corroborated by the medico-legal findings, which noted a distensible hymen consistent with penetration. It convicted Sevilla of rape and imposed the death penalty.
ISSUE
Whether the trial court erred in convicting the accused-appellant of incestuous rape and imposing the death penalty.
RULING
The Supreme Court affirmed the conviction and the imposition of the death penalty. The Court meticulously reviewed the records and found no reason to overturn the trial court’s assessment of credibility. The testimony of a minor victim of incestuous rape is accorded great weight, especially when given in a categorical, straightforward, and convincing manner, as Myra’s was. Her immediate disclosure to her mother and the subsequent medical findings provided sufficient corroboration.
The defense of denial, unsupported by any evidence and inherently weak against the positive identification by the victim, deserved no credence. The Court found all elements of rape present: carnal knowledge through force or intimidation, with the victim being under eighteen and the offender being her parent. Under Article 335 of the Revised Penal Code, as amended by Republic Act No. 7659 , the qualifying circumstance of the victim being under eighteen and the offender being a parent warrants the penalty of death. The award of civil indemnity was increased to P75,000.00 in line with prevailing jurisprudence.