G.R. No. L-23734 April 27, 1967
People of the Philippines, plaintiff-appellee, vs. Teodoro Sabio, defendant-appellant.

FACTS

On April 12, 1963, in Manapla, Negros Occidental, Teodoro Sabio was with a friend in a plaza when Romeo Bacobo, also a friend, approached with two others. Bacobo asked Sabio where he spent the holy week and simultaneously gave Sabio a “footkick greeting” by touching Sabio’s foot with his own foot. Sabio immediately stood up and struck Bacobo with a fist blow, causing a lacerated wound on Bacobo’s left eyelid that took 11 to 12 days to heal and prevented him from working during that period. Sabio was prosecuted for less serious physical injuries. The municipal court found him guilty. On appeal, the Court of First Instance also found him guilty but appreciated the mitigating circumstance of provocation, imposing a lower penalty.

ISSUE

Whether a fist blow delivered in retaliation to a “foot-kick greeting” constitutes self-defense or a justifying circumstance, entitling the accused to acquittal and relief from all liabilities.

RULING

No. The Supreme Court affirmed the judgment of conviction. A primordial requisite for self-defense under Article 11 of the Revised Penal Code is unlawful aggression, which requires real danger to life or personal safety. The “footkick greeting” was a playful kick, a practical joke between friends, and not a serious or real attack on personal safety. It did not constitute unlawful aggression but was merely a slight provocation. The Court distinguished this from a slap on the face, which represents a serious personal attack on a person’s dignity and safety. Therefore, Sabio’s retaliation was not justified as self-defense.