- Petitioner
- People
- Respondent
- Dimalanta
- Citation
- G.R. No. L-5196
- Court
- Supreme Court
- Division
- Second Division
- Ponente
- Jugo, J.
- Decided
- November 13, 1952
Whether defendant should be allowed to change his plea from guilty to not guilty, proper indemnity amount, and application of Indeterminate Sentence…
Summary
This 1952 criminal case involved Plaridel Dimalanta who was charged with theft of electric current worth P333 from Manila Electric Company using a 'jumper' device. After pleading guilty, he was sentenced to six months and one day imprisonment plus indemnity. He subsequently attempted to withdraw his guilty plea claiming he was misled, but his counsel later withdrew this motion. On appeal, the Supreme Court affirmed the conviction, ruling that the withdrawal of the motion to change plea eliminated any basis for review of that issue. The Court also held that defendant was not entitled to Indeterminate Sentence Law benefits since his sentence was under one year, and found no error in the proceedings below.