G.R. No. 132350 - PEOPLE OF THE PHILIPPINES, VS. LUTER ORCULA, SR., LUTER ORCULA, JR. ALIAS "JUN"*, ROLANDO ORCULA ALIAS "LANDO"*, AND NESTOR ORCULA ALIAS "BOY"*, ACCUSED, LUTER ORCULA, SR., ACCUSED- .D E C I S I O N - Supreme Court E-Library

Ruling

Accordingly, accused-appellant can be held liable only for the crime of homicide under Article 249 of the Revised Penal Code which is punishable by reclusion temporal. It appears, however, that accused-appellant Luter Orcula, Sr. voluntarily surrendered on April 5, 1994 and thereafter was committed to the custody of the Chief of Police of Kapalong, Davao by Judge Napy A. Agayan of the Municipal Trial Court of Kapalong. [38] There being one ordinary mitigating circumstance with no aggravating circumstance, the maximum penalty to be imposed should be reclusion temporal in its minimum period, pursuant to Article 64, par. 2 of the Revised Penal Code. Applying the Indeterminate Sentence Law, the minimum imposable penalty is any period within the range of the penalty next lower to that prescribed by the Code for the offense which is prision mayor . We likewise cannot sustain the award of actual damages in the amount of P3,000.00 considering that there were no receipts presented to support them. [39] WHEREFORE , the decision under review is hereby MODIFIED. Accused-appellant LUTER ORCULA, SR. is found guilty of HOMICIDE and is hereby sentenced to an indeterminate penalty of six (6) years and one (1) day of prision mayor as minimum, to twelve (12) years and one (1) day of reclusion temporal as maximum. Accused-appellant is further ordered to indemnify the wife of the victim in the amount of P50,000.00 and to pay P50,000.00 as moral damages. SO ORDERED.