G.R. No. 177751; January 7, 2013
PEOPLE OF THE PHILIPPINES, Plaintiff-Appellee, vs. FLORENCIO AGACER, EDDIE AGACER, ELYNOR AGACER, FRANKLIN AGACER and ERIC AGACER, Accused-Appellants.

FACTS

Accused-appellants, convicted of murder for the killing of Cesario Agacer, filed a Motion for Reconsideration of the Supreme Court’s December 14, 2011 Decision affirming their conviction. They argued that mere presence did not prove conspiracy, that a prior heated argument negated treachery, and that appellant Franklin Agacer, being a minor at the time of the crime, was entitled to the privileged mitigating circumstance of minority. During the pendency of the motion, the Court was informed that appellant Florencio Agacer had died on February 17, 2007.
The Office of the Solicitor General (OSG) maintained that conspiracy and treachery were sufficiently established but agreed that Franklin’s minority, supported by a belatedly submitted Certificate of Live Birth showing he was 16 years old at the time of the crime, should be considered as a mitigating circumstance.

ISSUE

The issues were: (1) the sufficiency of evidence for conspiracy and treachery; (2) the applicability of minority for Franklin; and (3) the effect of Florencio’s death on his liabilities.

RULING

The Motion for Reconsideration was partially granted. The Court declined to re-examine the issues of conspiracy and treachery, ruling that these were mere reiterations of arguments already fully considered and resolved in the assailed Decision. No new judicial determination was required.
However, the Court held that Franklin Agacer was entitled to the privileged mitigating circumstance of minority under Article 68(2) of the Revised Penal Code. His Certificate of Live Birth proved he was over 15 but under 18 years old at the time of the crime, warranting the imposition of the penalty next lower than that prescribed by law. The penalty for murder is reclusion perpetua to death. Applying the Indeterminate Sentence Law, Franklin was sentenced to an indeterminate penalty of ten (10) years of prision mayor (medium period) as minimum, to seventeen (17) years and four (4) months of reclusion temporal (medium period) as maximum.
Regarding Florencio Agacer, the Court ruled that his death prior to final judgment extinguished his criminal liability and the civil liability arising from the crime (ex delicto) pursuant to Article 89(1) of the Revised Penal Code and jurisprudence. Consequently, the judgment of conviction against him was set aside. The Court modified its prior Decision accordingly.