G.R. No. L-10263; March 13, 1915
THE UNITED STATES, plaintiff-appellee, vs. JAIME FILART and HILARIO SINGSON, defendant-appellants.

FACTS:
The accused, Jaime Filart and Hilario Singson, were charged with violating Act No. 1757 (the Gambling Law). They conspired to conduct a lottery or raffle for an automobile owned by Filart. They sold 450 tickets (370 at P5 each and 80 at P3 each), with each ticket representing a chance to win the automobile. A public drawing was held on May 31, 1914, in Vigan, Ilocos Sur, where a winning number was drawn by chance from a box containing all ticket numbers. The holder of the last number drawn, Lucas Siping, was declared the winner. The Court of First Instance of Ilocos Sur convicted both accused. Filart was sentenced to one month’s imprisonment and a P500 fine, while Singson was given a P500 fine. The court also ordered the confiscation of the automobile and the P2,090 proceeds from the ticket sales.

ISSUE:
1. Whether the scheme conducted by the appellants constitutes an illegal lottery under Act No. 1757 .
2. Whether the trial court correctly ordered the confiscation of the automobile and the money from ticket sales.

RULING:
1. Yes, the scheme was an illegal lottery. The Supreme Court affirmed the conviction, holding that the appellants’ scheme fell within the legal definition of a lottery. A lottery requires three elements: (a) a consideration paid (the price of the ticket), (b) a prize (the automobile), and (c) the distribution of that prize by chance (the random drawing). All these elements were present. The court cited various definitions, emphasizing that a lottery is a scheme where a result is determined purely by chance upon the payment of a valuable consideration. The defense that they acted as agents or had no interest in the result is not a valid defense under the law.

2. No, the confiscation order was improper. The Supreme Court reversed the portion of the judgment ordering the confiscation of the automobile and the P2,090. While Act No. 1757 , as amended by Act No. 2212 , authorizes the confiscation of money and instruments used in gambling, such property must be before the court and within its jurisdiction at the time of the confiscation order. In this case, neither the automobile nor the money was in the possession of the court or the parties to the action during the trial. The automobile had been awarded to the winner, Lucas Siping, and the money from ticket sales was not in the accused’s possession. The court had no jurisdiction over these properties or over the third parties (like Siping) who claimed them.

DISPOSITIVE PORTION:
The judgment of conviction and the criminal sentences imposed on Jaime Filart and Hilario Singson are AFFIRMED. The order for the confiscation of the automobile and the money obtained from the sale of tickets is REVERSED.