G.R. No. 135457; September 29, 2000
PEOPLE OF THE PHILIPPINES, plaintiff-appellee, vs. JOSE PATRIARCA, JR., alias “KA DJANGO,” CARLOS NARRA, alias “KA JESSIE” and TEN (10) JOHN DOES, accused-appellant.

FACTS

Accused-appellant Jose Patriarca, Jr., a member of the New People’s Army (NPA), was convicted of Murder by the Regional Trial Court for the killing of Alfredo Arevalo. The prosecution established that on June 30, 1987, Patriarca and armed companions abducted Arevalo, a CHDF member, from his home in Donsol, Sorsogon. Witness Nonito Malto testified that the accused, with a hogtied individual, rested at his house, later ordering the lights extinguished. Malto was awakened by gunshots and saw Patriarca holding a gun over the victim. The victim’s mother, Elisa Arevalo, later identified skeletal remains as her son’s. The defense denied involvement.

ISSUE

Whether the trial court erred in convicting accused-appellant of Murder for an act allegedly committed in furtherance of rebellion.

RULING

The Supreme Court reversed the conviction and acquitted Patriarca. The legal logic centers on the judicial recognition of a valid grant of amnesty. Accused-appellant had applied for and was granted amnesty under Proclamation No. 724 by the National Amnesty Commission (NAC) for crimes committed in pursuit of political ends. The Court emphasized the distinction between amnesty and pardon: amnesty is a public act that looks backward, obliterating the offense itself, and is granted by the President with congressional concurrence to classes of persons for political offenses. Since the Court takes judicial notice of this grant, and the NAC found the killing of Arevalo to be in furtherance of the rebellion, the amnesty is binding and effective. It serves to put the appeal to an end, as the offense is considered abolished. Consequently, the criminal liability is extinguished.