G.R. Nos. 106345-46 September 16, 1996
THE PEOPLE OF THE PHILIPPINES, plaintiff-appellee, vs. ROMEO TUSON y JABIDO, accused-appellant.

FACTS

Accused-appellant Romeo Tuson and the victims, brothers Loreto and Ceferino Villarin, were cousins and neighbors in Quezon City. On the night of October 11, 1990, after a prior dispute over gambling had been settled, the intoxicated victims were at their home. Ceferino witnessed Loreto, clad only in underwear, being shot in the neck by Tuson from the door of his adjacent, elevated shack as Loreto walked to the common lavatory. When Ceferino rushed to aid his brother, Tuson shot him in the face, shouting “Ikaw pa!” Multiple eyewitnesses, including Ceferino’s wife and nephew, corroborated the shooting. The victims were unarmed. Medical evidence showed downward bullet trajectories, consistent with firing from an elevated position.
Tuson claimed self-defense, alleging Loreto barged into his home armed with a gun and that they grappled, causing an accidental discharge. He stated he then shot Ceferino, who was allegedly armed with a bladed weapon. His story was corroborated by his wife and sister, though his sister admitted on cross-examination she did not see who opened Tuson’s door. No weapons were recovered from the victims. The Regional Trial Court convicted Tuson of Murder for Loreto’s death and Frustrated Murder for shooting Ceferino.

ISSUE

Whether the trial court erred in not appreciating the justifying circumstance of self-defense and in finding the crimes attended by treachery.

RULING

The Supreme Court affirmed the convictions but modified the penalty for Frustrated Murder. The defense of self-defense was correctly rejected. For self-defense to prosper, the accused must prove unlawful aggression, reasonable necessity of the means employed, and lack of provocation. The Court found no unlawful aggression. The alleged acts of shouting and banging on the door did not constitute an imminent attack, especially as Tuson was secure inside his home. The physical evidence and credible testimonies of multiple prosecution witnesses disproved Tuson’s version of a struggle inside his house. The recovery of empty shells outside and the downward bullet trajectories refuted his narrative.
The crimes were qualified by treachery. The attack was sudden and unexpected, giving the unarmed and unsuspecting victims no opportunity to defend themselves. Loreto was shot while in his underwear, walking to the toilet. Ceferino was shot while rushing to his brother’s aid. The method was deliberately adopted by Tuson without risk to himself. Proof of intent to kill was evident from the shots to the victims’ vital areas. The penalty for Murder was properly reclusion perpetua. The Court corrected the indeterminate sentence for Frustrated Murder to an imprisonment range of ten years of prision mayor as minimum to seventeen years and four months of reclusion temporal as maximum.