G.R. No. 173473 PEOPLE OF THE PHILIPPINES versus BETH TEMPORADA.
FACTS:

Accused-appellant Beth Temporada was found guilty beyond reasonable doubt of the crimes of illegal recruitment and estafa by the Regional Trial Court and the Court of Appeals. The controversy centers on the proper application of the Indeterminate Sentence Law to the penalty for estafa under Article 315 of the Revised Penal Code, specifically when the amount defrauded exceeds P22,000, triggering an incremental penalty. Jurisprudence reflects two conflicting schools of thought on this application.

ISSUE

Which of the two conflicting schools of thought on applying the Indeterminate Sentence Law to estafa involving amounts over P22,000 should be adopted: the first school (as in People v. Gabres), where the minimum term is fixed within the range of the penalty next lower to prision correccional maximum to prision mayor minimum, disregarding the excess amount as a modifying circumstance only for the maximum term; or the second school (as in People v. De la Cruz), where the minimum term varies and is one degree lower than the maximum term, which includes the incremental penalty?

RULING

The Separate Opinion argues that the first school of thought, exemplified by People v. Gabres, is more favorable to the accused and should be adopted. This approach considers the circumstance that the amount exceeds P22,000 as analogous to a generic modifying circumstance, relevant only for determining the maximum term of the indeterminate sentence. Consequently, the minimum term is taken from the penalty next lower to the prescribed penalty of prision correccional maximum to prision mayor minimum (i.e., prision correccional minimum to medium), without regard to the incremental penalty. The maximum term is then based on the prescribed penalty in its maximum period, plus the additional years for every P10,000 in excess of P22,000. This interpretation is grounded in the principles of in dubio pro reo (all doubts in favor of the accused) and the rule of lenity, aligning with the rehabilitative purpose of the Indeterminate Sentence Law.