GR 150630; (October, 2003) (Digest)
G.R. No. 150630-31; October 1, 2003
PEOPLE OF THE PHILIPPINES, appellee, vs. JAIME OLAYBAR y ODTUHAN, appellant.
FACTS
Appellant Jaime Olaybar was charged with two counts of rape against eight-year-old Rose Ann Into. The first information (Criminal Case No. 00-1600) alleged statutory rape by carnal knowledge on September 5, 2000. The second (Criminal Case No. 00-1601) charged rape by sexual assault for inserting his penis into her anus on September 6, 2000. The victim testified that on both evenings, the appellant brought her to a parked jeepney, assaulted her, and then escorted her home. Her mother reported the incidents after a confrontation. Medical examination by Dr. Merle P. Tan of the UP-PGH Child Protection Unit revealed physical injuries and findings consistent with blunt force or penetrating trauma, confirming sexual abuse.
The defense relied on alibi, claiming he was at home on the first evening and outside the parking lot on the second, and alleged the complaint was fabricated due to a dispute over parking. The trial court convicted Olaybar on both counts and imposed the death penalty for each. The case was automatically reviewed by the Supreme Court.
ISSUE
The primary issue is whether the trial court correctly convicted the appellant and imposed the death penalty for both counts of rape.
RULING
The Supreme Court affirmed the conviction but modified the penalties. For statutory rape under Article 266-A(1)(d) of the Revised Penal Code (Criminal Case No. 00-1600), the age of the victim (eight years old) alone establishes the crime, rendering force or consent irrelevant. The Court, however, found no aggravating circumstance to justify the death penalty. The prosecution failed to prove the appellant knew he was afflicted with a sexually transmitted disease, a necessary element for the aggravating circumstance of transmitting such a disease. Thus, the penalty was reduced to reclusion perpetua.
For rape by sexual assault under Article 266-A(2) (Criminal Case No. 00-1601), the penalty under Article 266-B is one degree lower than for rape by sexual intercourse. Applying the Indeterminate Sentence Law, the imposable penalty was set at four years and two months of prision correccional, as minimum, to nine years and one day of prision mayor, as maximum. The awards of damages were also adjusted accordingly, granting civil indemnity and moral damages for each count but reducing the amounts from those imposed by the trial court to align with prevailing jurisprudence.