PEOPLE vs. VICTOR, [G.R.
No. 127904, December 5, 2002]
Criminal Case Digest:
Digested Cases
Facts: That sometime in May 1996 in Quezon City, Philippines, Victor, the
accused herein, by means of force and intimidation, to wit: by then and there
willfully, unlawfully and feloniously undress said Marilyn Villanueva, a minor,
13 years old, step-daughter; and put himself on top of her, and
thereafter have carnal knowledge with the undersigned complainant against her
will and without her consent.
The Trial Court finds the accused, Esteban Victor y
Penis, GUILTY beyond reasonable doubt of the crime of rape, defined in and
penalized by Article 335 of the Revised Penal Code, as amended, and hereby
sentences the said accused to suffer the penalty of DEATH.
Accused-appellant avers that the trial court erred
in imposing on him the death penalty on its finding that he was the stepfather
of private complainant. He insists that the evidence on record shows that he
and Julieta Corpuz, the natural mother of private complainant were merely
live-in partners; they were not legally married. Accused-appellant points out
that even the trial court found that he was merely the common-law husband of
Julieta Corpuz. Even if he were the common-law husband of Julieta Corpuz, the
death penalty could not have been lawfully imposed on him because what was
alleged in the criminal complaint for rape as a special qualifying circumstance
was that he was the stepfather of Marilyn Villanueva; however, the prosecution
proved that he was merely the common-law husband of Julieta.
Issue: WON a common-law
step-father could be considered as as special qualifying circumstance?
Held: The declaration of accused-appellant that he was married to Julieta,
even if made in the course of the proceedings in the trial court, is not
conclusive proof that the two are legally married. Said declaration did not
dispense with the burden of the prosecution to adduce in evidence the marriage
contract of accused-appellant and Julieta. Neither may the prosecution rely on
the disputable presumption that when a man and a woman live together as husband
and wife, they are presumed to be married. Relationship is a qualifying
circumstance in rape and must not only be alleged. It must also be proved
beyond reasonable doubt as the crime itself. Hence, the appropriate penalty should
be reclusion perpetua.
