Incomplete defense

Another common defense raised by those accused of a crime, is self defense. Here, the accused do not deny committing the crime but claim they are doing it to defend themselves and their own lives because of the aggression being committed by the victim. But in order to be valid and acceptable as a defense and to be acquitted of the crime charged, what must be shown and duly proven by the accused? Is the self-serving claim of the accused in this regard enough to prove this defense? These are the questions resolved in this case involving two feuding families.

The case involved a cadastral lot being administered by Celia, on which Lando and his family built their house. Upon instruction of Rene the husband of Celia, said house was pulled down because Lando had not asked permission to build it. Later on, Rene had a guardhouse constructed thereon. When Lando saw the persons building the guardhouse, he told them to stop working and left, carrying with him a shovel-like farming implement with a flat iron bar known as “tagad.” Then he and his sons, Rod, Aldrin and Luther carrying bladed instruments, followed by his wife Rosing, a public school teacher, and daughter Blessy went back to the guardhouse and saw Rene overseeing the unloading of stones from his truck. Lando, Rod, Aldrin and Luther pounced on Rene by hitting, hacking and stabbing him 35 times causing incised, lacerated, chopped, punctured wounds, abrasions and contusions resulting in Rene’s death due to hemorrhage.

So, a criminal complaint for murder was filed in the Regional Trial Court against Lando and his family for the killing of Rene with treachery and abuse of superior strength. The prosecution presented the owner of the adjacent land, the customer in a nearby store buying salt and one stone hauler who actually witnessed what happened.

Lando and his family on the other hand alleged self defense and defense of relatives. Lando said that when he asked Rene whether he could rebuild their house, Rene allegedly shouted at him then kicked him. He fell down and was kicked again as he saw Rene drew a gun from his waist. So he got the “tagad” and struck Rene. Then he drew his bolo and repeatedly hacked Rene as his children Rod and Blessy ran toward him. He told them to go home and he himself went home. Rod and Blessy corroborated their father’s story while Aldrin, Luther and Rosing claimed they were not at the scene of the crime.

The trial court however did not believe Lando’s defense and found him guilty of murder together with his wife Rosing and children Rod, Aldrin and Luther and sentenced them to reclusion perpetua. Their daughter, Blessy was however acquitted. On motion for reconsideration, the lower court also acquitted Rosing.

This ruling was affirmed by the Supreme Court (SC). The SC ruled that for self defense to succeed, the accused must prove by clear and convincing evidence: (a) unlawful aggression on the part of the victim; (b) reasonable necessity of the means employed to prevent or repel it; and (c) lack of sufficient provocation on the part of the person(s) defending himself (themselves).

In this case, Lando’s testimony corroborated by his son Aldrin indeed creates a semblance of unlawful aggression. But it is reflective of self-interest as it comes from the accused Lando and his son and therefore polluted. In addition, no gun was presented to rebut the testimony of Celia that her husband Rene had no gun. Furthermore the nature, character, location and extent of the wounds suffered by the Rene belie that he is the unlawful aggressor. The SC said that there was no reasonable necessity to inflict upon Rene, 35 wounds which are important indicia to disprove a plea of self defense. And because the killing was aggravated by treachery and abuse of superior strength, it was really murder with the penalty of reclusion temporal to death. But because of the mitigating circumstance of voluntary surrender, the penalty for Lando, Rod and Aldrin should be reclusion perpetua, With respect to his son Luther who was only 15 years old at the time of the commission of the offense, the sentence should be imprisonment of eight years and one day to 14 years, eight months and one day (People vs Jose Daquipil et.al., G.R. 86305, January 20, 1995)

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