GR 152618; (August, 2004) (Digest)
G.R. No. 152618 ; August 12, 2004
JOHNNY REY TUBURAN, petitioner, vs. PEOPLE OF THE PHILIPPINES, respondent.
FACTS
Petitioner Johnny Rey Tuburan was charged with murder for stabbing Jose Siman. The prosecution presented eyewitness Edwin Janay, who testified that he and the victim were on a drinking spree when Tuburan suddenly ran and stabbed Siman from behind before fleeing. The medico-legal officer confirmed the fatal stab wound on the victim’s left back. The defense consisted of Tuburan’s denial and alibi, claiming he was elsewhere and that Janay’s testimony was motivated by a grudge, as Janay’s cousin had been stabbed by Tuburan’s brother. The trial court convicted Tuburan of homicide, finding the qualifying circumstances of treachery and evident premeditation not proven. The Court of Appeals, however, modified the conviction to murder, ruling that the sudden attack from behind constituted treachery.
ISSUE
Whether the Court of Appeals correctly appreciated the qualifying circumstance of treachery to convict the petitioner of murder.
RULING
No. The Supreme Court modified the appellate decision and reinstated the trial court’s finding of homicide. The legal logic is that for treachery to qualify a killing as murder, the prosecution must prove that the accused deliberately adopted a mode of attack intended to ensure its execution without risk to himself from any defense the victim might make. Here, while the attack was indeed sudden and from behind, the prosecution evidence did not establish that the petitioner consciously and deliberately employed this method to facilitate the killing without risk. The eyewitness account merely described a spontaneous, sudden assault. Without proof of this deliberate choice of method, treachery cannot be appreciated. Consequently, the crime committed is homicide, not murder. The Court also recalculated the award for loss of earning capacity using the established formula, increasing it to P810,000.00. The penalty was adjusted to an indeterminate sentence of eight years and one day of prision mayor as minimum to fourteen years, eight months, and one day of reclusion temporal as maximum.