March 1904 - Philippine Supreme Court Decisions/Resolutions
Philippine Supreme Court Jurisprudence
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G.R. No. 1560 March 21, 1904 - UNITED STATES v. BERNABE GOMEZ
003 Phil 436:
003 Phil 436:
EN BANC
[G.R. No. 1560. March 21, 1904. ]
THE UNITED STATES, Complainant-Appellee, v. BERNABE GOMEZ, Defendant-Appellant.
Perfecto Gabriel, for Appellant.
Solicitor-General Araneta, for Appellee.
SYLLABUS
1. CRIMINAL LAW; FALSIFICATION OF PUBLIC DOCUMENT. — There can be no conviction of the offense of knowingly using a false document in the absence of proof of the defendant’s knowledge of its falsity.
D E C I S I O N
WILLARD, J. :
The defendant was charged with the falsification of a vehicle license and was convicted of the offense of using the altered license in court, knowing that it had been changed.
The altered license was presented at the trial of a criminal case in the municipal court of Manila for the purpose of showing that this defendant had a license for the vehicle. But there is no evidence in this case that the defendant here was a party to the criminal case in the municipal court. On the contrary it seems that the defendant in that case was the cochero of this defendant. Nor is there any evidence that the defendant in this case was present at the trial in the municipal court or ever took any part therein or ever saw the license in its original or altered form or knew that it had been altered or ever authorized anyone to present the altered license in the trial before the municipal court.
The judgment of the court below is reversed and the defendant acquitted with costs de oficio.
Arellano, C.J., Torres, Cooper, Mapa and McDonough, JJ., concur.
Johnson, J., did not sit in this case.
The altered license was presented at the trial of a criminal case in the municipal court of Manila for the purpose of showing that this defendant had a license for the vehicle. But there is no evidence in this case that the defendant here was a party to the criminal case in the municipal court. On the contrary it seems that the defendant in that case was the cochero of this defendant. Nor is there any evidence that the defendant in this case was present at the trial in the municipal court or ever took any part therein or ever saw the license in its original or altered form or knew that it had been altered or ever authorized anyone to present the altered license in the trial before the municipal court.
The judgment of the court below is reversed and the defendant acquitted with costs de oficio.
Arellano, C.J., Torres, Cooper, Mapa and McDonough, JJ., concur.
Johnson, J., did not sit in this case.
