G.R. No. L-1226, September 4, 1903
THE UNITED STATES, complainant-appellee, vs. DOROTEO SABIO, defendant-appellant.

FACTS:
The defendant, Doroteo Sabio, was charged with the crime of frustrated murder. The incident occurred on November 2, 1902, in Manila. Both Sabio and the complainant, Aniceto Reyes, were members of the Constabulary. They were engaged in gambling in their quarters when a dispute arose over a debt of 30 centavos which Sabio claimed Reyes owed him. After Reyes refused to pay immediately, a fistfight ensued. Sabio, being smaller, broke away, went to a nearby gun rack, took a carbine, loaded it, and approached Reyes. According to testimony, Sabio demanded payment while pointing the gun, and during a struggle for possession of the firearm, it discharged. The bullet struck the floor approximately five inches from Reyes’s feet. Sabio testified that his intention was only to hit Reyes with the butt of the gun, not to shoot him.

ISSUE:
Whether the defendant, Doroteo Sabio, is guilty of the crime of frustrated murder.

RULING:
No. The Supreme Court reversed the conviction for frustrated murder. To constitute frustrated murder, it must be proven that the perpetrator performed all acts of execution intended to kill, but the crime was not consummated due to causes independent of his will. The evidence failed to establish that Sabio had the deliberate premeditated intent to kill Reyes. He did not aim to kill, threaten to kill, or perform acts conclusively showing an intent to kill. His own testimony indicated he intended to strike Reyes with the gun’s butt, not to shoot him. The discharge of the firearm appeared to occur accidentally during a struggle. However, Sabio did violate Article 408 of the Penal Code by discharging a firearm at a person. Consequently, the Court modified the judgment and convicted him of the lesser crime of discharging a firearm at a person, sentencing him to one year and one month of prision correccional.