GR 146790; (August, 2002) (Digest)
G.R. No. 146790 ; August 22, 2002
THE PEOPLE OF THE PHILIPPINES, plaintiff-appellee, vs. JOVITO SITAO alias “Beto,” accused-appellant.
FACTS
Accused-appellant Jovito Sitao was charged with the rape of his daughter, Jovy Sitao, a fourteen-year-old minor, on July 19, 1999, in Valencia, Bukidnon. The information alleged that he used a handgun and intimidation to have sexual intercourse with her against her will. During pre-trial, the parties stipulated that Jovy Sitao was the daughter of the accused and was fourteen years old at the time of the incident, and that the medical findings of Dr. Joselyn M. Baeyens were true and correct. At trial, Jovy testified that her father, after a drinking session, woke her at midnight, inserted his fingers into her vagina, and then had sexual intercourse with her while armed with a gun. The accused interposed the defense of denial, claiming he had not lived with Jovy since she was taken by her grandparents. The Regional Trial Court found him guilty of incestuous rape and sentenced him to death, ordering him to pay P75,000.00 as civil indemnity and P50,000.00 as moral damages.
ISSUE
Whether the trial court erred in imposing the death penalty and awarding P75,000.00 as civil indemnity despite the alleged failure of the prosecution to prove the victim’s minority with the requisite degree of proof.
RULING
The Supreme Court affirmed the conviction but modified the penalty and the civil indemnity. The Court held that while the rape was proven beyond reasonable doubt, the qualifying circumstance of the victim’s minority (being under eighteen and the offender being a parent) was not proven with the same degree of certainty. The victim’s testimony alone, even corroborated by the accused’s own admission of her age, is insufficient to prove minority as a qualifying circumstance for the imposition of the death penalty. Jurisprudence requires independent evidence, such as a certified certificate of live birth or an official school record. The stipulation of the parties regarding age is also insufficient for qualifying circumstances. Consequently, the death penalty was reduced to reclusion perpetua. The civil indemnity was accordingly reduced from P75,000.00 to P50,000.00, as the higher amount is awarded only when the qualifying circumstance is proven. The award of P50,000.00 as moral damages was affirmed.