June 2004 - Philippine Supreme Court Decisions/Resolutions
Philippine Supreme Court Jurisprudence
People v. Cagas : 145504 : June 30, 2004 : J. Carpio-Morales : Third Division : Decision
THIRD DIVISION
[G.R. NO. 145504 : June 30, 2004]
PEOPLE OF THE PHILIPPINES, Appellee, v. LARRY CAGAS, Appellant.
D E C I S I O N
CARPIO-MORALES, J.:
On appeal is the August 17, 2000 of the Regional Trial Court of Surigao City, Branch 30 convicting Larry Cagas (appellant) of murder and sentencing him to suffer reclusion perpetua.
In the December 18, 1995 Information1 filed against appellant, he was charged as follows:chanroblesvirtua1awlibrary
That on or about the 2nd day of November 1995 at 2:00 oclock in the afternoon, more or less, at the Roman Catholic Cemetery, Poblacion Bacuag, Surigao del Norte, and within the jurisdiction of this Honorable Court, accused Larry Cagas, with jurisdiction of this Honorable Court, accused Larry Cagas, with intent to kill, through treachery, did then and there willfully, unlawfully and feloniously stab one Venecio Elicano, using a Batangas Knife, thereby inflicting fatal wounds upon Venecio Elicano which caused his instantaneous death to the damage and prejudice of the heirs of Venecio Elicano in such amount as shall established in court.
CONTRARY TO LAW with the qualifying circumstance of treachery.
Following appellants arraignment on June 6, 1996 during which he entered a plea of not guilty,2 the case was tried.
Around 2:00 p.m. of November 2, 1995, all Souls Day, while Venecio Elicano (the victim) and his friend Alejandro Jamero, Jr. were seated on a bench at the store near the entrance of the public cemetery of Bacuag, Surigao del Norte, the victim was thrice stabbed with a Batangas knife by appellant. The victim was immediately brought to the hospital but was pronounced dead on arrival.3 cralawred
Soon after the police was informed of the incident, PO2 Rey Tadifa repaired to the cemetery proper where appellant fled. PO2 Tadifa, on seeing appellant, advised him to surrender the knife which appellant heeded.4 cralawred
The evidence for the prosecution shows that as the victim and Jamero were sitting on the bench, appellant who was then drunk, together with Cocoy Ibarra and two others, approached the victim and told the latter that they were cousins (Magpinsan pa tayo tol), drawing the victim to respond: Is that so?; and that following the shaking of hands by appellant and the victim, appellant suddenly stabbed the victim.5 cralawred
Upon the other hand, appellant, interposing self-defense, declared as follows: On reaching the store where he was to buy an additional candle and cigarette, the victim asked him his name and where he is from. On giving his name and stating that he came from Barangay Pungtod, the victim suddenly grabbed him by the collar while his (the victims) companions stood up. As he got scared, he told the victim: Brod, no because we are still relative[s] even if they were not. The victim went on to box him twice, however, and he was able to lean on the table. The victim again boxed him, and as he thought that the victims two other companions might attack him, he grabbed a Batangas knife lying on the table and thrice stabbed the victim. He then went to the police following the incident.6 cralawred
At the witness stand, when appellant was asked if he submitted himself for medical examination in light of his claim that he was boxed several times, he answered in the negative, he explaining that he was afraid because he was almost shot by a policeman who happened to be a relative of the victim.7 cralawred
The post-mortem examination conducted on the victim by Dr. Manolo Tan, Municipal Health Officer, showed that the victim suffered the following wounds:
1.
