GR 30832; (August, 1980) (Digest)
G.R. No. L-30832 August 29, 1980
THE PEOPLE OF THE PHILIPPINES, plaintiff-appellee, vs. SIMPLICIO REALON and EUTROPIO SOLIVEN, accused-appellants.
FACTS
On April 13, 1969, a group of public school teachers was rehearsing a song on the grandstand of the Baguio City Athletic Bowl. The accused, Simplicio Realon, was a member of the tenor group, while his co-accused, Eutropio Soliven, a mason, was seated behind him. The victim, Vicente Ramos, was standing in the bass group on the same row. During the rehearsal, Realon suddenly pulled out from the formation, and a loud gunshot was heard, causing panic. Ramos fell, having been shot at the nape of his neck, and died almost instantly. Realon and Soliven hastily fled but were apprehended near the main gate.
The prosecution established that the fatal shot was fired from a 12-gauge “Paltic” shotgun. The medico-legal report confirmed a gunshot wound at the back of Ramos’s neck with powder burns, indicating the muzzle was within two feet. The trial court found both accused guilty of Murder qualified by treachery, with the aggravating circumstance of evident premeditation, and imposed the death penalty. The case was elevated to the Supreme Court for automatic review.
ISSUE
Whether the accused-appellants are guilty of Murder qualified by treachery and attended by the aggravating circumstance of evident premeditation.
RULING
The Supreme Court affirmed the conviction for Murder but modified the penalty. The Court found treachery (alevosia) to be present. The attack was sudden and from behind, at close range, while the victim was singing and utterly unaware, depriving him of any opportunity to defend himself. This manner of execution directly and specially ensured the accomplishment of the crime without risk to the assailant.
However, the Court ruled that evident premeditation was not proven. For this aggravating circumstance to be considered, the prosecution must establish: (1) the time when the accused determined to commit the crime; (2) an act manifestly indicating their clinging to that determination; and (3) a sufficient lapse of time between the determination and execution to allow reflection. The evidence merely showed the accused arrived together at the rehearsal. There was no proof of when the plan was conceived or of acts showing cool reflection and persistent adherence to a pre-conceived plan. The killing appeared to be a spontaneous, albeit treacherous, act. Consequently, with treachery as the sole qualifying circumstance and no generic aggravating circumstance, the penalty is reclusion temporal in its maximum period to death. Applying the Indeterminate Sentence Law and there being no mitigating circumstances, the Court imposed the penalty of reclusion perpetua.