GR 45100; (October, 1936) (Digest)
G.R. No. 45100 ; October 26, 1936
THE PEOPLE OF THE PHILIPPINE ISLANDS, plaintiff-appellee, vs. EPIFANIO DIOKNO and ROMAN DIOKNO, defendants-appellants.
FACTS
The defendants, Epifanio Diokno and his son Roman Diokno, were convicted of murder for the killing of Yu Hiong. Yu Hiong had eloped with Salome Diokno, Epifanio’s daughter. Learning of this, Epifanio and Roman went to San Pablo, Laguna, found Yu Hiong at a house, and pursued him when he tried to flee. They overtook the unarmed Yu Hiong on a stair landing. Despite Yu Hiong kneeling and begging for pardon, Roman stabbed him in the back and side, and Epifanio also stabbed him. Yu Hiong sustained multiple wounds, including a fatal stab to the lung, and died days later. At trial, the court admitted the victim’s dying declarations (Exhibits E and K) made shortly after the attack and while hospitalized.
ISSUE
1. Whether the trial court erred in admitting the victim’s dying declarations (Exhibits E and K) as evidence.
2. Whether the trial court erred in convicting Roman Diokno.
3. Whether the trial court erred in sentencing Epifanio Diokno to reclusion perpetua for murder.
RULING
The Supreme Court affirmed the conviction.
1. The dying declarations were properly admitted. For Exhibit E, made immediately after the attack while the victim was semi-conscious, the circumstances clearly indicated a sense of impending death, satisfying the requirements for a dying declaration. It was also admissible as part of the res gestae. For Exhibit K, made in the hospital while the victim was in serious condition and complaining of great difficulty breathing, the sense of impending death could likewise be inferred, despite his death occurring three days later.
2. Roman Diokno’s conviction was proper. The evidence established his direct participation in the killing, as he stabbed the victim multiple times.
3. The penalty of reclusion perpetua was correctly imposed. The crime was murder qualified by abuse of superior strength. The appellants, armed with knives, jointly attacked the unarmed and pleading victim, clearly taking advantage of their combined strength and weapons. No mitigating circumstances were present to offset this qualifying circumstance.
AI Generated by Armztrong.