Aggravating Circumstances (Art. 14 par. 3) –Disregard of rank, age, or sex, -On September 20, 1965, Margarita, a native of Mt.
f Mt. Province, arrived in
and dwelling
PEOPLE OF THE PHILIPPINES, vs.AMADO DANIEL
CASE SUMMARY:
On September 20, 1965, Margarita Paleng while in the bus, Amado Daniel
came and molested her wherein even as Margarita tried to alight from him,
he still followed her in the boarding house where Margarita is temporary
dwelling. From thereon, the crime of rape was committed.
CASE HISTORY:
 Court of First Instance of Baguio City convicted:
 Daniel guilty and sentencing him to suffer reclusion temporal. He
filed motion for reconsideration but denied;hence, forwarded to
Court of Appeals.
 Court of Appeals 10th Division believed:
Amado Daniel is guilty of the crime charged; however, the
sentence imposed to accused in the judgment appealed from is not in
accordance with law which is Republic Act No. 4111, providing that —The
crime of rape shall be punished by reclusion perpetua.
Pursuant to Section 17 of Chapter 11 of the Judiciary Act of 1948
(Republic Act No. 296, as amended) provides that theSupreme Court shall
have exclusive jurisdiction over all criminal cases involving offenses for
which the penalty imposed is death or life imprisonment. Thus, relegated to
the Supreme Court.
Supreme Court believe and hold the view:
The dispositive portion of the decision as written and rendered is in
accordance with the Constitution and the law; hence, Amado Daniel guilty
of rape and sentenced to reclusion perpetua.
FACTS:
-13 year old Margarita Paleng filed a complaint against Amado Daniel alias
“Amado Ato” for the crime of rape.
Baguio City from Tublay in a Dangwa bus. She was then en route to her
boarding house in Guisad as she was a highschool student at the Baguio
Eastern High school. While she was waiting inside the bus, the accused
Daniel came and started molesting her by inquiring her name and getting
hold of her bag. She did not allow the latter and instead called the attention
of the bus driver and the conductor but was merely shrugged off by them. It
seemed that they were also afraid of the accused.
-Despite the rain, she left the bus and went to ride in a jeep parked some
100 meters away. The accused followed her and rode and sat beside her.
When Margarita alighted in Guisad, she was again followed by the accused.
- Reaching her boarding house, she opened the door and was about to close
it when the accused dashed in and closed the door behind him.
-He pulled a dagger 8 inches long and threatened her saying, “If you talk, I
will kill you.” Because of her fear, Margarita fell silent. She was then forced
to lie down with the accused placing a handkerchief in her mouth and
holding the dagger to her neck.
-Her attempts to flee were to no avail as she was only 4 ft and 8 inches tall
and 95 lbs while Daniel was 5 ft, 7 inches tall and weighed 126 lbs.
-The accused was successful in having carnal knowledge of Margarita.
Thereafter she lost consciousness. When she recovered, Daniel had already
gone.
-For his defense, Daniel asserts that he and Margarita have known each
other since 1963 and this was in fact the second time he had carnal
knowledge of her. Also, he alleges that he promised to marry Margarita and
was actually surprised that she filed the complaint against him.
-Medico-Legal report by Dr. Perfecto Micu indicated that Margarita was a
virgin before the incident complained of.
ISSUE: Whether or not a boarding house falls within the definition of
“dwelling” in the RPC?
HELD: Yes. The boarding house falls within the definition of dwelling.
RATIO:
The court explained that generally in a case of this nature, the evidence of
the prosecution consists solely of the testimony of the offended party. The
declaration of the victim, who at the time of the incident was a little less
than 13 years of age, on the basis of which the trial court found the charge
of rape was duly established. Moreover, the issue being one of credibility,
the Court find no cogent reasons for discarding the findings of facts of the
trial court which were sustained by the Court of Appeals after the latter had
examined the evidence as a result of which it certified the case to this Court.
PREMISES CONSIDERED, We affirm the judgment of conviction of
Amado Daniel for the crime of rape as charged, and We sentence him to
suffer the penalty of reclusion perpetua and order him to indemnify
Margarita Paleng by way of moral damages in the amount of Twelve
Thousand Pesos (P12,000.00) and pay the costs.
Decision Modified.
SO ORDERED.

Furthermore, Appellant assails the veracity of the testimony of the

complainant. The court negates that there could no possible motive a
thirteen-year old girl barely in her teens has in fabricating a story that could
only bring down on her and her family shame and humiliation and make her
an object of gossip and curiosity among her classmates and the people of
her hometown. It cannot be denied that a public trial involving a crime of
this nature subjects the victim to what can be a harrowing experience of
submitting to a physical examination of her body, an investigation by police
authorities, appearance in court for the hearing where she has to unravel
lewd and hideous details of a painful event which she would prefer to forget
and leave it unknown to others. The Court also finds it preposterous in the
insinuation that this complaint was filed because appellant had not married
the girl although he promised to marry her.

In the issue of dwelling, although Margarita was merely renting a bed space
in a boarding house, her room constituted for all intents and purposes a
“dwelling” as the term used in Art. 14 (3) RPC. The Court said that it is not
necessary under the law, that the victim owns the place where he lives or
dwells. But he a lessee, a boarder, or a bed-spacer, the place is his home the
sanctity of which the law seeks to protect and uphold.

For all the foregoing the Court holds that the correct penalty is death
pursuant to Art. 335 of the RPC. However, for lack of necessary number of
votes, the penalty next lower in degree is to be applied.

DISPOSITIVE PORTION: