G.R. Nos. 39303-39305; March 17, 1934
THE PEOPLE OF THE PHILIPPINE ISLANDS, plaintiffs-appellee, vs. FELIPE KALALO, ET AL., defendants. FELIPE KALALO, MARCELO KALALO, JUAN KALALO, and GREGORIO RAMOS, appellants.

FACTS

Appellants Felipe, Marcelo, and Juan Kalalo, along with Gregorio Ramos, were charged with two counts of murder and one count of frustrated murder. The charges arose from a land dispute between appellant Marcelo Kalalo and Isabela Holgado. On October 1, 1932, when Isabela and her brother Arcadio Holgado sent laborers to plow the disputed land, the appellants, armed with bolos, confronted them. Upon the instigation of Fausta Abrenica (mother of the Kalalos), the appellants simultaneously attacked: Marcelo Kalalo attacked Arcadio Holgado, while Felipe Kalalo, Juan Kalalo, and Gregorio Ramos attacked Marcelino Panaligan (a cousin of the Holgados), killing both victims instantly. Subsequently, Marcelo Kalalo fired four shots at Hilarion Holgado, who was fleeing, but missed. The trial court convicted the appellants of two counts of murder and, for the shooting incident, convicted Marcelo Kalalo of the lesser crime of discharge of firearm.

ISSUE

Whether the trial court correctly appreciated the crimes committed and imposed the proper penalties.

RULING

No. The Supreme Court modified the trial court’s judgment. The killing of Arcadio Holgado and Marcelino Panaligan constituted homicide, not murder, as the qualifying circumstance of treachery was not proven; the attack was frontal and the victims were aware of the impending aggression. The penalty for each homicide was reduced to reclusion temporal. For the shooting at Hilarion Holgado, the act constituted attempted homicide, not merely discharge of firearm, as Marcelo Kalalo’s successive shots demonstrated an intent to kill which failed due to causes independent of his will. The penalties were adjusted accordingly, and the benefits of the Indeterminate Sentence Law (Act No. 4103) were applied.

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