G.R. No. 135066 - PEOPLE OF THE PHILIPPINES, VS. BERLITO TUMANON, CARLO TUMANON, BARBARA TUMANON, JUNREL TUMANON, AND WINNIE TABIOLO, ACCUSED-.D E C I S I O N - Supreme Court E-Library

Ruling

WHEREFORE, this Court finds all the accused GUILTY beyond reasonable doubt of the crime of murder, defined and penalized under Article 248 of the Revised Penal Code, as amended by R.A. 7659, and hereby sentences them as follows: Accused Berlito Tumanon, albeit the penalty prescribed by law for murder is reclusion perpetua to death, his voluntary surrender to the authorities having been proven with no aggravating circumstances to offset the same, is hereby appreciated in his favor and accordingly sentences him to the penalty of Reclusion Perpetua, in accordance with Art. 63, par. three (3), of the Revised Penal Code, which states: "In all cases in which the law prescribes a penalty composed of two indivisible penalties, the following rules shall be observed in the application thereof: "1. x x x x x "2. x x x x x "3. When the commission of the act is attended by some mitigating circumstance and there is no aggravating circumstance, the lesser penalty shall be applied." Considering that `Reclusion Perpetua to Death' are two indivisible penalties and there is no aggravating but one mitigating circumstance present in this case, the lesser penalty which is Reclusion Perpetua should be imposed on accused Berlito Tumanon; Accused Barbara Tumanon is hereby sentenced to the penalty of Reclusion Perpetua also applying Art. 248 in relation to Art. 63, par. two (2) of the same Code which states: "1. x x x x x "2. When there are neither mitigating nor aggravating circumstances in the commission of the deed, the lesser penalty shall be applied." Accused Winnie Tabiolo is hereby sentenced to the penalty of Reclusion Perpetua based on the same rule applied to Barbara Tumanon; Accused Carlo Tumanon who, at the time of the commission of the crime on October 19, 1997 was only 17 years old as per the evidence on record, is hereby sentenced to the penalty applying the Indeterminate Sentence Law, from 12 years of Prision Mayor as the minimum to 17 years and 4 months of Reclusion Temporal as its maximum. The law provides that if a convict is 15 years or over but under 18 years of age at the time of the commission of the crime, the penalty next lower than that prescribed by law shall be imposed, but always in the proper period (Art. 68 (2), Revised Penal Code). The Court treats, applies and considers this in relation also to Art. 61, subpar. (2) of the Revised Penal Code which provides: "When the penalty prescribed for the crime is composed of two indivisible penalties x x x, the penalty next lower in degree shall be that immediately following the lesser of the penalties prescribed in the respective graduated scale;" Accused Junrel Tumanon, who per the evidence on record was only 14 years old at the time of the commission of the crime on October 19, 1997, but he acted with discernment as this Court carefully observed him all throughout the hearings, is hereby sentenced to the penalty under the Indeterminate Sentence Law, from 6 years of Prision Correccional as the minimu