GR 38125; (October, 1933) (Digest)
G.R. No. 38125 ; October 28, 1933
THE PEOPLE OF THE PHILIPPINE ISLANDS, plaintiff-appellee, vs. AURELIO S. DEL PRADO (alias McCARTHY), defendant-appellant.
FACTS
The appellant, Aurelio S. del Prado, was convicted by the Court of First Instance of Zamboanga of the crime of rape with grave physical injury and sentenced to twenty years of reclusion temporal. On appeal, he assigned only one error: that the prosecution failed to prove the crime was committed within the court’s territorial jurisdiction.
ISSUE
Whether the prosecution failed to prove that the crime was committed within the territorial jurisdiction of the trial court.
RULING
No. The Supreme Court affirmed the conviction. It held that there was direct testimony establishing that the barrio of Calarian was within the municipality of Zamboanga. Furthermore, the court could take judicial notice that said barrio was within the geographical limits of Zamboanga. The Court also examined the entire record sua sponte due to the heinousness of the offense and found, despite some doubts about certain details of the complainant’s testimony, that independent corroboratory evidence established the corpus delicti and the appellant’s guilt beyond reasonable doubt.
AI Generated by Armztrong.