GR L 5426; (March, 1910) (Digest)
G.R. Nos. 5426 and 5427
THE UNITED STATES, plaintiff-appellee, vs. LINO SUMANGIL, defendant-appellant.
March 7, 1910
FACTS:
Lino Sumangil, the municipal treasurer of Cuyapo, Nueva Ecija, was charged in two separate criminal proceedings with the crime of falsification of public documents.
In Case No. 5426, on or about May 16, 1908, Sumangil issued an official voucher for expenses stating a payment of P3.50 to Tomas Daprosa for the transportation of municipal boxes. The actual amount paid was P0.60, and Sumangil made the false statement to appropriate the balance.
In Case No. 5427, on or about May 19, 1908, Sumangil issued another official voucher for expenses stating a payment of P1.50 to Vicente Defiesta for the transportation of municipal oil cases. The actual amount paid was P0.50, and Sumangil made the false statement to appropriate the balance.
The trial court convicted Sumangil in both cases and sentenced him to fourteen years, eight months, and one day of cadena temporal, along with accessory penalties, for each offense. Sumangil appealed both convictions to the Supreme Court.
ISSUE:
Whether the trial court erred in finding the defendant, Lino Sumangil, guilty beyond reasonable doubt of falsification of public documents in both cases.
RULING:
No, the trial court did not err. The Supreme Court affirmed the convictions.
The Court held that the evidence on record in both cases fully sustained the findings of fact by the trial court and established Sumangil’s guilt beyond a reasonable doubt. The Court found no error in the proceedings prejudicial to the substantial interests of the accused.
Therefore, the judgments of conviction and the sentences imposed by the trial court in both cases were affirmed.
However, in view of the severe penalties necessarily imposed under the strict application of the Penal Code, the Court deemed it proper to invite the attention of the Chief Executive to the nature of the offenses and the penalties for such action as deemed proper in the premises (a recommendation for executive clemency).