GR L 25607; (October, 1968) (Digest)
G.R. No. L-25607 October 14, 1968
PEOPLE OF THE PHILIPPINES, plaintiff-appellee, vs. RAMON NAVARRA and VIRGILIO CRUZ, defendants-appellants.
FACTS
On December 11, 1961, in Bacolod City, Tomas Martir, a violent person under the influence of alcohol, assaulted merchant Ramon Masa. Police officers Ramon Navarra and Virgilio Cruz, upon learning of the incident from Masa, later found Martir. After checking at police headquarters and finding no formal complaint recorded, they decided to take Martir home. En route, they stopped at the Florida Nightclub where Navarra went inside. According to the prosecution’s version, which the trial court believed, Martir then jumped from the patrol jeep and ran away. Cruz alerted Navarra, who ordered the nightclub watchman, Antonio Santiago, to chase Martir. Santiago caught Martir and pushed him against a wall. Navarra then shot Martir twice. As Martir staggered away, Cruz shot him once, followed by Navarra firing two more shots, killing Martir. A knife was later placed near Martir’s body. The autopsy revealed five gunshot wounds, one fatal. The defendants claimed self-defense, alleging Martir unexpectedly grabbed Cruz’s service revolver, a struggle ensued where the gun fired hitting Martir, Martir wrested the gun and pointed it at Navarra, prompting Navarra to fire four shots.
ISSUE
Whether the trial court correctly convicted defendants-appellants Ramon Navarra and Virgilio Cruz of murder.
RULING
Yes, the conviction is affirmed. The Supreme Court found the plea of self-defense unproven. Defendants failed to rely on the strength of their own evidence as required. The ballistic finding showed bullets from both defendants’ revolvers, contradicting Cruz’s claim he did not fire. The court found it improbable that Martir, if he had wrested the gun, would not have fired it, could have handled it ably while drunk, or that the gun would misfire to hit him during the struggle. The crime was properly qualified as murder due to abuse of superior strength under Article 14(15) of the Revised Penal Code. The deceased was unarmed, drunk, smaller than Navarra, and the attack by the two fully armed police officers was unexpected, constituting a clear abuse of superiority. The court emphasized the duty of police officers as peace officers and the need for the full measure of the law when they commit crimes.