CASE DIGEST

Case: People vs. Gregorio

G.R. No.: 109614-15

Date: March 29, 1996
Ponente: Kapunan, J.

FACTS:

That on or about the 8th day of May, 1986, in the Municipality of Murcia, Province of
Negros Occidental, Philippines, the above-named defendants-appellants, armed with a samurai
and a bolo, conspiring and confederating and mutually helping each other, with evident
premeditation and treachery, and with intent to kill, attack, assault, stab and hack CARLOS
CATORSE y APELYEDO and MARCELO LO y NICAVERA thereby inflicting multiple stab and hack
wounds upon the body of the victims, which caused their instantaneous death.

The incident transpired during the wake of the grandson of one of the accused wherein
the victims, Carlos Catorse and Marcelo Lo and some other people namely Jovito Nicavera,
Renato Calabas, Tunggak (son of Adronico) and Ricardo Gregorio were also attending the wake
and playing pusoy (russian poker).

At around 1:00 AM of May 8, 1986, Ricardo, in a very loud noise, reprimanded Tunggak
from peeping at the cards of other players. Overhearing this, Adronico ordered Tunggak
downstairs and scolded and boxed the latter several times.

Seeing the incident, Carlos Catorse approached and begged Adronico from further hurting
his son. While in this act of pacifying, suddenly Ricardo stealthily stabbed Carlos Catorse with a
samurai several times and fell to the ground. For his part, Adronico also repeatedly hacked the
victim with a bolo.

Meanwhile, Jovito Nicavera also tried to get out of the house but Adronico hacked him
instead hitting his left shoulder. Jovito’s nephew, Marcelo Lo, tried to help his uncle but Ricardo
hacked him on his forearm. Adronico followed and hacked Marcelo in the nape. Although
wounded, the latter managed to run out of the house but the former overtook him and hacked
him again.

After the incident, both the accused fled from the place of the crime but was pursued by
authorities and succeeded in apprehending them.

The post-mortem examination on the cadaver of the victims revealed that Carlos Catorse
sustained twelve (12) hack and four (4) stab wounds while Marcelo Lo sustained six (6) hack
wounds which caused their death.
 Accordingly, an information for the murder of Carlos Catorse was filed against both
accused and another information for the murder of Marcelo Lo was filed against Adronico
Gregorio. Later, the two cases were consolidated and tried jointly by the RTC of Negros
Occidental, Bacolod City, Branch 43.

Upon arraignment, both accused pleaded not guilty to the offense charged against them.

The trial court, however, convinced by the evidences presented by the prosecution, find
both accused guilty beyond reasonable doubt for the crime of murder sentencing them to life
imprisonment and indemnify the heirs of the victims the sum of Thirty Thousand Pesos (30,000)
with no subsidiary imprisonment in case of insolvency.

The herein accused instituted an appeal on the following grounds: 1) the RTC erred in
giving weight and credence to the theory of the prosecution and disregarding that of the defense,
2) the RTC erred in rejecting the appellants defense of self-defense, 3) the RTC erred in finding
that their exist conspiracy and treachery, 4) the RTC erred in finding both the accused guilty
beyond reasonable doubt of the crime of murder.

However, Ricardo Gregorio died prior to the filing of their appeal.

ISSUE:

Whether or not the RTC was correct in imposing the penalty of life imprisonment against the
accused.

RULING:

The Court modify the decision of the RTC with regards to the penalty imposed against
Adronico Gregorio wherein he was sentenced to suffer the penalty of reclusion perpetua and
indemnify the heirs of Carlos Catorse and Marcelo Lo the sum of Fifty Thousand Pesos (P50,000)
each. As to Ricardo Gregorio, his death extinguished both his criminal and civil liability arising
from the said crime.