- Petitioner
- Aniceto Ibabao
- Respondent
- People
- Citation
- G.R. No. L-36957
- Court
- Supreme Court
- Decided
- September 28, 1984
Whether failure to lend aid to victim justifies penalty enhancement under Article 365 of Revised Penal Code when not alleged in Information; Motion…
Summary
Petitioner Aniceto Ibabao was convicted of Homicide thru Reckless Imprudence after his jeep fatally struck a person in Davao in 1967. The key legal issue involved whether his failure to stop and render aid warranted penalty enhancement under Article 365 of the Revised Penal Code, as amended by R.A. 1790. The Supreme Court established important precedent by ruling that failure to lend aid constitutes a qualifying circumstance that must be specifically alleged in the Information to justify penalty enhancement, similar to treachery in murder cases. The Court also rejected a motion for new trial based on witness recantation, emphasizing that recanted testimony is unreliable and dangerous to the judicial process. The final penalty was modified to prision correccional with increased indemnity of P30,000, balancing the criminal law requirements with procedural due process protections.
Focus of dispute
Whether failure to lend aid to victim justifies penalty enhancement under Article 365 of Revised Penal Code when not alleged in Information; Motion for new trial based on witness recantation
Legal facts
On April 30, 1967, at about 11:00 p.m., petitioner's owner-type jeep struck a person at Bankerohan terminal in Davao. The vehicle did not stop after the incident. Witness Jose Patalinghog Jr. gave chase, recorded plate number 57675, identified petitioner as driver, and reported to Matina Police Sub-Station. Petitioner was charged with Homicide thru Reckless Imprudence in Criminal Case No. 3091C. Petitioner presented alibi defense through two witnesses.
Judgement and reasoning
City Court of Davao: Convicted petitioner of Homicide thru Reckless Imprudence. Applied penalty enhancement for failure to lend aid, sentencing him to one year eight months and twenty days to four years, two months and one day of prision correccional, plus P6,000 indemnity and P2,000 moral damages.
Court of Appeals: Modified the decision by increasing penalty to prision mayor (3 years, 6 months, 21 days to 7 years, 4 months, 1 day) for failure to stop and give aid. Increased indemnity to P12,000 and eliminated separate moral damages award.
Supreme Court: Modified penalty back to prision correccional (2 years, 4 months to 4 years, 2 months, 1 day). Ruled that failure to lend aid cannot enhance penalty unless alleged in Information as it constitutes qualifying circumstance. Denied motion for new trial based on witness recantation. Increased indemnity to P30,000.