EN BANC 4. ID.; ID.; PENALTY.
— The penalty applicable for parricide
under article 246 of the Revised Penal Code is composed only two
[G.R. No. L-3246. November 29, 1950.] indivisible penalties, to wit, reclusion perpetua to death. Although the
commission of the act is attended by some mitigating circumstance
without any aggravating circumstance to offset them, article 63 of the
THE PEOPLE OF THE PHILIPPINES, plaintiff-appellee, vs. ABELARDO
said code is the one applicable and must be applied.
FORMIGONES, defendant-appellant.
5. id.; id.; attention OF THE CHIEF EXECUTIVE INVITED TO THE
CASE. — When the court believes that the appellant is entitled to a
Luis Contreras, for appellant. lighter penalty the case should be brought to the attention of the Chief
Executive who, in his discretion may reduce the penalty to that next
Solicitor General Felix Bautista Angelo and Solicitor Felix V. lower to reclusion perpetua to the death or otherwise apply executive
Makasiar, for appellee. clemency in the manner he sees fit.
SYLLABUS
D ECISION
1. CRIMINAL LAW; PARRICIDE; IMBECILITY AS
EXEMPTING
CIRCUMSTANCES; REQUISITES. — In order that a person could be MONTEMAYOR, J p:
regarded as an imbecile within the meaning of article 12 of the Revised
Penal Code so as to be exempt from criminal liability, he must be This is an appeal from the decision of the Court of First Instance of
deprived completely of reason of discernment and freedom of the will at Camarines Sur finding the appellant guilty of parricide and sentencing him
the time of committing the crime. to reclusion perpetua, to indemnify the heirs of the deceased in the
2. ID.; ID.; ID.; ID. — A man who could feel the pangs of amount of P2,000, and to pay the costs. The following facts are not
jealousy and take violent measures to the extent of killing his wife whom disputed.
he suspected of being unfaithful to him, in the belief that in doing so he In the month of November, 1946, the defendant Abelardo
was vindicating his honor, could hardly be regarded as an imbecile. Formigones was living on his farm in Bahao, Libmanan, municipality of
Sipocot, Camarines Sur, with his wife, Julia Agricola, and his five children.
3. ID.; ID.; FEEBLEMINDEDNESS AND ACT IN A FIT OF JEALOUSY
From there they went to live in the house of his halfbrother, Zacarias
AS MITIGATING CIRCUMSTANCES. — Feeblemindedness of the accused
Formigones, in the barrio of Binahian of the same municipality of Sipocot,
warrants the finding in his favor of the mitigating circumstance provided
to find employment as harvesters of palay. After about a month's stay or
for in either paragraph 8 or paragraph 9 of article 13 of the Revised Penal
rather on December 28, 1946, late in the afternoon, Julia Agricola was
Code and the fact that the accused evidently killed his wife in a t of
sitting at the head of the stairs of the house. The accused, without any
jealousy, he is, likewise entitled to the mitigating circumstance in
previous quarrel or provocation whatsoever, took his bolo from the wall
paragraph 6 of the same article — that of having acted upon an impulse
of the house and stabbed his wife, Julia, in the back, the blade
so powerful as naturally to have produced passion or obfuscation.
penetrating the right lung and causing a severe hemorrhage resulting in
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her death not long thereafter. The blow sent Julia toppling down the opinion that Abelardo was suffering only from feeblemindedness and not
stairs to the ground, immediately followed by her husband Abelardo imbecility and that he could distinguish right from wrong.
who, taking her up in his arms, carried her up the house, laid her on the In order that a person could be regarded as an imbecile within the
floor of the living room and then lay down beside her. In this position he meaning of article 12 of the Revised Penal Code so as to be exempt from
was found by the people who came in response to the shouts for help criminal liability, he must be deprived completely of reason or
made by his eldest daughter, Irene Formigones, who witnessed and discernment and freedom of the will at the time of committing the crime.
testified to the stabbing of her mother by her father. The provisions of article 12 of the Revised Penal Code are copied from
Investigated by the Constabulary, defendant Abelardo signed a and based on paragraph 1, article 8, of the old Penal Code of Spain.
written statement, Exhibit D, wherein he admitted that he killed his wife. Consequently, the decisions of the Supreme Court of Spain interpreting
The motive was admittedly that of jealousy because according to his and applying said provisions are pertinent and applicable. We quote
statement he used to have quarrels with his wife for the reason that he Judge Guillermo Guevara on his Commentaries on the Revised Penal
often saw her in the company of his brother Zacarias; that he suspected Code, 4th Edition, pages 42 to 43:
that the two were maintaining illicit relations because he noticed that his "The Supreme Court of Spain held that in order that
wife had become indifferent to him (defendant). this exempting circumstance may be taken into account, it is
During the preliminary investigation conducted by the justice of the necessary that there be a complete deprivation of
peace of Sipocot, the accused pleaded guilty, as shown by Exhibit E. At the intelligence in committing the act, that is, that the accused
be deprived of reason; that there be no responsibility for his
trial of the case in the Court of First Instance, the defendant entered a plea
own acts; that he acts without the least discernment; 46
of not guilty, but did not testify. His counsel presented the testimony of
that there be a complete absence of the power to discern,
two guards of the provincial jail where Abelardo was confined to the effect or that there be a total deprivation of freedom of the will.
that his conduct there was rather strange and that he behaved like an For this reason, it was held that the imbecility or insanity at
insane person; that sometimes he would remove his clothes and go stark the time of the commission of the act should absolutely
naked in the presence of his fellow prisoners; that at times he would deprive a person of intelligence or freedom of will, because
remain silent and indifferent to his surroundings; that he would refuse to mere abnormality of his mental faculties does not exclude
take a bath and wash his clothes until forced by the prison authorities; and imputability.
that sometimes he would sing in chorus with his fellow prisoners, or even 49
alone by himself without being asked; and that once when the door of his "The Supreme Court of Spain likewise held that deaf-
cell was opened, he suddenly darted from inside into the prison compound muteness cannot be equalled to imbecility or insanity.
apparently in an attempt to regain his liberty. "The allegation of insanity or imbecility must be
The appeal is based merely on the theory that the appellant is an clearly proved. Without positive evidence that the
imbecile and therefore exempt from criminal liability under article 12 of defendant had previously lost his reason or was demented,
the Revised Penal Code. The trial court rejected this same theory and we a few moments prior to or during the perpetration of the
are inclined to agree with the lower court. According to the very witness crime, it will be presumed that he was in a normal condition.
of the defendant, Dr. Francisco Gomez, who examined him, it was his Acts penalized by law are always reputed to be voluntary,
and it is improper to conclude that a person acted
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unconsciously, in order to relieve him from liability, on the his written statement Exhibit D, it is said that when he and his wife first
basis of his mental. condition, unless his insanity and went to live in the house of his half brother, Zacarias Formigones, the
absence of will are proved." latter was living with his grandmother, and his house was vacant.
As to the strange behaviour of the accused during his However, after the family of Abelardo was settled in the house, Zacarias
confinement, assuming that it was not feigned to stimulate insanity, it not only frequented said house but also used to sleep there nights. All
may be attributed either to his being feebleminded or eccentric, or to a this may have aroused and even partly confirmed the suspicions of
morbid mental condition produced by remorse at having killed his wife. Abelardo, at least to his way of thinking.
From the case of United States vs. Vaquilar (27 Phil. 88), we quote the The appellant has all the sympathies of the Court. He seems to be
following syllabus: one of those unfortunate beings, simple and even feebleminded, whose
"Testimony of eye-witnesses to a parricide, which faculties have not been fully developed. His action in picking up the body
goes no further than to indicate that the accused was of his wife after she fell down to the ground, dead, taking her upstairs,
moved by a wayward or hysterical burst of anger or passion, laying her on the floor, and lying beside her for hours, shows his feeling
and other testimony to the effect that, while in confinement of remorse at having killed his loved one though he thought that she had
awaiting trial, defendant acted absentmindedly at times, is betrayed him. Although he did not exactly surrender to the authorities,
not sufficient to establish the defense of insanity. The still he made no effort to flee and compel the police to hunt him down
conduct of the defendant while in confinement appears to and arrest him. In his written statement he readily admitted that he killed
have been due to a morbid mental condition produced by his wife, and at the trial he made no effort to deny or repudiate said
remorse." written statement, thus saving the government all the trouble and
expense of catching him, and insuring his conviction.
After a careful study of the record, we are convinced that the
Although the deceased was struck in the back, we are not
appellant is not an imbecile. According to the evidence, during his
prepared to find that the aggravating circumstance of treachery attended
marriage of about 16 years, he has not done anything or conducted
the commission of the crime. It seems that the prosecution was not
himself in anyway so as to warrant an opinion that he was or is an
intent on proving it. At least said aggravating circumstance was not
imbecile. He regularly and dutifully cultivated his farm, raised five
alleged in the complaint either in the justice of the peace court or in the
children, and supported his family and even maintained in school his
Court of First Instance. We are inclined to give him the benefit of the
children of school age, with the fruits of his work. Occasionally, as a side
doubt and we therefore decline to find the existence of this aggravating
line he made copra. And a man who could feel the pangs of jealousy and
circumstance. On the other hand, the fact that the accused is
take violent measures to the extent of killing his wife whom he suspected
feebleminded warrants the finding in his favor of the mitigating
of being unfaithful to him, in the belief that in doing so he was vindicating
circumstance provided for in either paragraph 8 or paragraph 9 of article
his honor, could hardly be regarded as an imbecile. Whether or not his
13 of the Revised Penal Code, namely, that the accused is "suffering some
suspicions were justified, is of little or no import. The fact is that he
physical defect which thus restricts his means of action, defense or
believed her faithless.
communication with his fellow beings," or such illness "as would diminish
But to show that his feeling of jealousy had some color of the exercise of his will power." To this we may add the mitigating
justification and was not a mere product of hallucination and aberrations circumstance in paragraph 6 of the same article, — that of having acted
of a disordered mind as that an imbecile or a lunatic, there is evidence to
the following effect. In addition to the observations made by appellant in
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upon an impulse so powerful as naturally to have produced passion or "Yet, in view of the excessive penalty imposed, the
obfuscation. The accused evidently killed his wife in a fit of jealousy. strict application of which is inevitable and which, under the
With the presence of two mitigating circumstances without any law, must be sustained, this court now resorts to the
aggravating circumstance to offset them, at rst we thought of the discretional power conferred by paragraph 2 of article 2 of
possible applicability of the provisions of article 64, paragraph 5 of the the Penal Code; and.
Revised Penal Code for the purpose of imposing the penalty next lower to "Therefore, we affirm the judgment appealed from
that prescribed by article 246 for parricide, which is reclusion perpetua to with costs, and hereby order that a proper petition be led
death. It will be observed however, that article 64 refers to the with the executive branch of the Government in order that
application of penalties which contain three periods whether it be a the latter, if it be deemed proper in the exercise of the
single divisible penalty or composed of three different penalties, each prerogative vested in it by the sovereign power, may reduce
one of which forms a period in accordance with the provisions of articles the penalty to that of the next lower."
76 and 77, which is not true in the present case where the penalty Then, in the case of People vs. Castañeda (60 Phil. 604), another
applicable for parricide is composed only of two indivisible penalties. On parricide case, the Supreme Court in affirming the judgment of conviction
the other hand, article 63 of the same Code refers to the application of sentencing defendant to reclusion perpetua, said that notwithstanding
indivisible penalties whether it be a single divisible penalty, or two the numerous mitigating circumstances found to exist, inasmuch as the
indivisible penalties like that of reclusion perpetua to death. It is penalty for parricide as fixed by article 246 of the Revised Penal Code is
therefore clear that article 63 is the one applicable in the present case. composed of two indivisible penalties, namely, reclusion perpetua to
Paragraph 2, rule 3 of said article 63 provides that when the death, paragraph 3 of article 63 of the said Code must be applied. The
commission of the act is attended by some mitigating circumstance and Court further observed:
there is no aggravating circumstance, the lesser penalty shall be applied. "We are likewise convinced that appellant did not
Interpreting a similar legal provision the Supreme Court in the case of have that malice nor has exhibited such moral turpitude as
United States vs. Guevara (10 Phil. 37), involving the crime of parricide, in requires life imprisonment, and therefore under the
applying article 80, paragraph 2 (rule 3 of the old Penal Code) which provisions of article 5 of the Revised Penal Code, we
corresponds to article 63, paragraph 2 (rule 3 of the present Revised respectfully invite the attention of the Chief Executive to the
Penal Code), thru Chief Justice Arellano said the following: case with a view to executive clemency after appellant has
served an appreciable amount of confinement."
"And even though this court should take into
consideration the presence of two mitigating circumstances In conclusion, we find the appellant guilty of parricide and we
of a qualifying nature, which it can not afford to overlook, hereby affirm the judgment of the lower court with the modification that
without any aggravating one, the penalty could not be the appellant will be credited with one-half of any preventive
reduced to the next lower to that imposed by law, because, imprisonment he has undergone. Appellant will pay costs.
according to a ruling of the court of Spain, article 80 above- Following the attitude adopted and the action taken by this same
mentioned does not contain a precept similar to that court in the two cases above cited, and believing that the appellant is
contained in Rule 5 of article 81 (now Rule 5, art. 64 of the entitled to a lighter penalty, this case should be brought to the attention
Rev. Penal Code). (Decision of September 30, 1879.) of the Chief Executive who, in his discretion may reduce the penalty to
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that next lower to reclusion perpetua to death or otherwise apply
executive clemency in the manner he sees fit.
Moran, C.J., Paras, Feria, Pablo, Bengzon, Tuason, Reyes and Jugo,
JJ., concur.
Padilla, J., I concur in the result.
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