G.R. No. L-5162
THE UNITED STATES, plaintiff-appellee, vs. MIKE BEECHAM, defendant-appellant.
February 26, 1910

FACTS:
Defendant Mike Beecham was charged with murder for the death of Edward T. Clark. The information alleged that on May 11, 1908, at Camp Stotsenberg, Beecham maliciously, intentionally, and criminally, with premeditation and treachery, discharged a firearm against Clark, a soldier, causing fatal wounds that led to his death on May 14, 1908. The lower court convicted Beecham of murder and sentenced him to life imprisonment, indemnification, and costs. Beecham appealed this judgment. The Supreme Court noted that this crime was committed concurrently and with the same weapon as the crime in a related case, G.R. No. 5161 , and incorporated the facts and reasoning from that prior decision into the present case.

ISSUE:
Whether the lower court erred in convicting Mike Beecham of murder and imposing the penalty of life imprisonment.

RULING:
The Supreme Court reversed the judgment of the court below. The Court found Mike Beecham guilty of the crime of murder, qualified by treachery and attended by the aggravating circumstance of premeditation. Based on the facts and reasons set forth in the related G.R. No. 5161 , the Supreme Court imposed the penalty of death, with the accessories mentioned in Article 53 of the Penal Code. Beecham was also ordered to indemnify the heirs of Edward T. Clark in the sum of P1,000 and pay the costs of the action.