GR L 2065; (January, 1950) (Digest)
G.R. No. L-2065; January 31, 1950
THE PEOPLE OF THE PHILIPPINES, plaintiff-appellee, vs. HILARION JARDINICO, defendant-appellant.
FACTS
The accused, Hilarion Jardinico, a Filipino citizen, was charged with treason for acts committed during the Japanese occupation. The prosecution proceeded on two counts. First, on November 26, 1942, in Sitio Biernesan, Sagay, Negros Occidental, Jardinico, acting as a driver and guide for Japanese soldiers, participated in the raid of the house of Porfirio de la Pena. He assisted in the arrest and interrogation of Porfirio and his wife Josefa, including assaulting them. He then looted the house and set it on fire. Porfirio was taken away. Second, later that same day at Central Leonor, Escalante, Jardinico, as part of the same Japanese patrol, untied Porfirio de la Pena from a truck, tied him to a post, and bayoneted him to death. The Japanese patrol also opened fire on a group of Filipinos at the central, killing 20-25 people. Jardinico was convicted of treason with homicide and sentenced to death by the People’s Court.
ISSUE
Whether the trial court erred in convicting the accused of the complex crime of treason with homicide.
RULING
Yes. The Supreme Court affirmed the conviction for treason but modified the penalty. The information charged only the crime of treason. The killing of Porfirio de la Pena, while proven, is absorbed and must be regarded as included in the crime of treason, following established jurisprudence. The Court found Jardinico’s guilt for treason proven beyond reasonable doubt based on the overt acts of adhering to the enemy by serving as a guide and driver, participating in raids, arrests, looting, and the killing of Porfirio de la Pena. However, due to lack of sufficient votes to impose the death penalty, the sentence was commuted to life imprisonment. The Court declined to hold him responsible for the mass killing of 20-25 others at Central Leonor, as there was no showing he had prior knowledge or direct participation in that shooting.
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