GR L 1766; (March, 1949) (Digest)
G.R. No. L-1766; March 31, 1949
EL PUEBLO DE FILIPINAS, plaintiff-appellee, vs. JOSE DANAN, FELIX EVANGELISTA, FRANCISCO EVANGELISTA, and FRANCISCO BARTOLO, defendants-appellants.
FACTS
The appellants, along with others, were convicted of murder for the killing of Alipio Baluyot. The evidence established that the appellants, as members of a Huk “D-I barrio Unit,” sent a letter requesting the death of Alipio Baluyot. A meeting was convened where the request was approved, and a group was designated to carry out the killing. The appellants met the designated kidnappers on the way. Together, they proceeded to the victim’s house at midnight, kidnapped him after tying his hands, and brought him to a sugarcane field where he was killed with a blow to the head from a shovel by another accused (Leonardo Fernando). The body was then buried. The appellants later led authorities to the burial site.
ISSUE
Whether the trial court erred in: (1) finding the qualifying circumstance of treachery; (2) finding the aggravating circumstance of premeditation; and (3) convicting the appellants as co-principals (co-authors) rather than mere accomplices.
RULING
The Supreme Court affirmed the conviction.
1. Treachery (alevosia) was present. The victim was killed after his hands were tied, placing him in complete and absolute defenselessness.
2. Evident Premeditation (premeditacion conocida) was present. The plan to kill was not a momentary impulse. The appellants requested the killing by letter, a meeting was held to approve it and plan the execution, and the act was carried out hours later, demonstrating a deliberate and persistent design.
3. The appellants are co-principals (co-authors), not mere accomplices. There was a conspiracy. All accused acted in concert with a common purpose: the appellants initiated the request, the group approved it, and each played a coordinated role in the kidnapping, killing, and burial. Conspiracy implies a concert of purpose, not participation in every act. The appellants are liable as co-principals for the crime committed in pursuance of the conspiracy.
4. Penalty. The Court found the qualifying circumstance of treachery and the aggravating circumstances of premeditation and escalamiento (breaking into a dwelling). These were offset by the mitigating circumstances of voluntary surrender and lack of instruction. Nocturnity was not separately considered as it was absorbed by treachery. The penalty of reclusion perpetua was affirmed. A separate opinion concurred but recommended increasing the indemnity.
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