Abuse of superior strength

The killing of a person under the aggravating circumstance of abuse of superior strength qualifies the crime to murder. This case of Lito explains “abuse of superior strength”.

Lito, his brother Dan, Greg and Andy were accused of the crime of murder for conspiring and confederating together and mutually helping and aiding one another and taking advantage of their superior strength in assaulting, attacking and inflicting upon Bert (victim) mortal stab wounds that directly caused his death, on or about November 26, 1997.

Only Lito was arrested on June 5, 1998 as the other accused remained at large. Upon arraignment after his Motion to Quash the Information on the ground of mistaken identity was denied, Lito pleaded “not guilty” to the charge.

During his trial two eyewitnesses, Nilo and Carding testified. In a clear, categorical and consistent manner Nilo told the court that he saw what happened while he was 3 to 5 arms length away from the commotion somewhere below the C-5 bridge because he went there when he heard a shout “may away doon” while watching TV in his house. At the place of the commotion which was illuminated by light coming from a Meralco post, he saw the victim who was then unarmed being held on his right hand by Lito while his other hand was held by Andy. Greg was positioned at the victim’s back and clubbed the victim’s head with a piece of wood. Dan was in front of the victim and stabbed him three times. He was able to identify the victim who was his neighbor and the assailants who were residents of the area.

Carding who happened to be passing by the Bridge at the time, also saw what happened. In the same clear, categorical and consistent manner, Carding testified that he saw men fighting under the C-5 Bridge which was illuminated by a light coming from a lamppost located some ten meters away. From his vantage point some 15 meters away from the fight, he saw Lito, Dan, Greg and Andy ganging up on the victim. He saw Lito holding the victim’s hand while Dan was stabbing him. “Wala siyang (victim) magawa kasi hinahawakan siya, gusto niyang makawala pero wala siyang magawa, hinahawakan siya sa leeg”, Carding testified. He also said he personally knew both Lito and the victim; they had been his neighbors since 1986.

Post mortem examination report showed that the victim sustained three stab wounds on the left chest and over his right and left abdominals caused by a single bladed sharp pointed instrument.

On the basis of these eyewitness testimonies and the autopsy report, the Regional Trial Court (RTC) convicted Lito of the crime of murder because it found that the killing was attended by abuse of superior strength. He was sentenced to suffer the penalty of reclusion perpetua despite his defense of alibi which the RTC disregarded because he was positively identified by the eyewitnesses and because it was not physically impossible for him to be at the crime scene despite being in another place as he claimed. This decision was affirmed by the Court of Appeals (CA) with modification on the award of damages. Were the RTC and the CA correct in finding that Lito is guilty of murder?

Yes. To take advantage of superior strength means to purposely use excessive force out of proportion to the means of defense available to the person attacked. Taking advantage of superior strength does not always mean numerical superiority or that the victim was completely defenseless. It depends upon the relative strength of the aggressor/s vis a vis the victim. It is determined by the excess of the aggressor’s natural strength over that of the victim which is taken advantage of to weaken the defense and ensure the commission of the crime.

The evidence shows that the victim was unarmed when he was attacked. In the attack two assailants held his arms on either side while the other two on the victim’s front and back each armed with a knife and piece of wood that they later used on the victim. Against this onslaught, there was indeed gross inequality of forces between the victim and the four assailants and that the victim was overwhelmed by forces he could not match. The RTC and the CA therefore correctly appreciated the aggravating circumstance of abuse of superior strength which qualified the killing to the crime of murder (People vs. Amodia, G.R. 173791, April 7, 2009).

Note: Books containing compilation of my articles on Labor Law and Criminal Law (Vols. I and II) are now available. Call tel. 7249445.

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