This case has been cited 3 times or more.
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2013-01-09 |
LEONARDO-DE CASTRO, J. |
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| Amistoso was specifically charged in the Information with statutory rape under Article 266-A, paragraph (1)(d) of the Revised Penal Code, as amended. It is undisputed that AAA was over 12 years old on July 10, 2000, thus, Amistoso cannot be convicted of statutory rape. Nonetheless, it does not mean that Amistoso cannot be convicted of rape committed under any of the other circumstances described by Article 266-A, paragraph 1 of the Revised Penal Code, as amended, as long as the facts constituting the same are alleged in the Information and proved during trial. What is controlling in an Information should not be the title of the complaint, nor the designation of the offense charged or the particular law or part thereof allegedly violated, these being, by and large, mere conclusions of law made by the prosecutor, but the description of the crime charged and the particular facts therein recited.[24] In addition, the Information need not use the language of the statute in stating the acts or omissions complained of as constituting the offense. What is required is that the acts or omissions complained of as constituting the offense are stated in ordinary and concise language sufficient to enable a person of common understanding to know the offense charged.[25] | |||||
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2012-08-22 |
SERENO, J. |
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| Force in rape cases is defined as "power, violence or constraint exerted upon or against a person."[60] In People v. Maceda,[61] cited by the CA, the court explained the standards for evaluating the force employed in rape: x x x.[I]t is not necessary that the force and intimidation employed in accomplishing it be so great or of such character as could not be resisted. It is only necessary that the force or intimidation be sufficient to consummate the purpose which the accused had in mind. x x x. | |||||
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2009-04-16 |
QUISUMBING, J. |
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| In contrast, appellants could only offer denial and alibi in their defense. Denial and alibi are weak defenses which must be supported by strong evidence of non-culpability to merit credibility. These are negative self-serving evidence which cannot be given greater weight than the testimony of a credible witness who testified on affirmative matters. Between the positive declarations of a prosecution witness and the negative statements of the accused, the former deserves more credence.[38] In addition to AAA's positive declarations, appellants' alibi[39] placed them within the periphery of the locus criminis. In order for the defense of alibi to prosper, it is not enough to prove that appellants were somewhere else when the offense was committed; it must, likewise, be demonstrated that they were so far away that it was not possible for them to have been physically present at the place of the crime or its immediate vicinity at the time of its commission.[40] | |||||