G.R. No. 197645 - CARLOS JAY ADLAWAN, V. PEOPLE OF THE PHILIPPINES.

Ruling

WHEREFORE, in view of the foregoing, the court finds the accused guilty beyond reasonable doubt of the crime of Frustrated Homicide with the generic aggravating circumstances of using superior strength and with insult or in disregard of the respect due to the offended party on account of her being a stepmother, age and sex, and hereby sentences him, after applying the Indeterminate Sentence Law, to suffer imprisonment from six (6) years of prision correccional, as minimum, to twelve (12) years of prision mayor, as maximum. The court also orders him to indemnify the victim Georgia Adlawan P30,000.00 as moral damages and all her medical expenses, without subsidiary imprisonment in case of insolvency. [41] x x x Aggrieved, the petitioner filed a notice of appeal to elevate the case to the CA. [42] The CA Ruling In its assailed decision, the CA affirmed with modification the joint judgment of the RTC. The appellate court concurred with the trial court's observation that the prosecution was able to establish by proof beyond reasonable doubt that petitioner, with intent to kill, hacked and inflicted mortal wounds upon Georgia. The appellate court, thus, opined that the trial court correctly convicted the petitioner of frustrated homicide. The appellate court, however, observed that the trial court erred when it appreciated the ordinary aggravating circumstances of abuse of superior strength and insult or disregard of the respect due to the offended party, as these circumstances were not alleged in the information against the petitioner. Consequently, it modified the penalty imposed by the trial court upon petitioner. The dispositive portion of the assailed decision provides: WHEREFORE, premises considered, the assailed Decision of the Regional Trial Court of Cebu City, Branch 5, is MODIFIED in that appellant Carlos Jay Adlawan is hereby sentenced to suffer a prison term of six (6) years of prision correccional as minimum, to ten (10) years of prision mayor as maximum. In all other respects, the appealed Decision is AFFIRMED. [43] On 7 October 2010, the petitioner filed a motion for reconsideration before the CA wherein he reiterated the arguments raised in his appeal. On 28 December 2010, the petitioner, with Georgia's conformity, filed a Joint Motion to Dismiss and to Admit Private Complainant's Affidavit of Recantation and Desistance. Apparently, on 10 December 2010, Georgia executed an Affidavit of Recantation and Desistance, [44] wherein she admitted fabricating the accusations against the petitioner. She claimed that she sustained injuries on 18 February 2004 when she accidentally smashed herself against the clear glass door of their dining room and after she slipped when she was about to board their multicab. In its Resolution of 15 June 2011, the appellate court denied the petitioner's motion for reconsideration and the joint motion to dismiss and to admit private complainant's affidavit of recantation and desistance. The appellate court reasone