G.R. No. 129291 July 3, 2002 PEOPLE OF THE PHILIPPINES, plaintiff-appellee, vs. ENRICO A. VALLEDOR, accused-appellant.

On March 6, 1991, at around 1:45 in the afternoon, Roger Cabiguen was in his house at Burgos Street, Barangay Tagumpay, Puerto Princesa City. He was working inside his bedroom together with his first cousin, Elsa Rodriguez, and his friends, Simplicio Yayen and Antonio Magbanua. Roger was working at his table and seated on his bed while Elsa was across the table. Antonio was on the left side, while Simplicio was seated near the door, on the right side of Roger. All of a sudden, accused-appellant entered the room; uttered Roger's nickname ("Jer") and immediately attacked him with a knife, but Roger was able to parry the thrust and was stabbed instead on the right forearm. Accused-appellant then stabbed Elsa Rodriguez on the chest and said, "Ako akabales den, Elsa." (I had my revenge, Elsa). Thereafter, accused-appellant fled, leaving the stunned Simplicio and Antonio unharmed. Roger and Elsa were immediately brought to the hospital. On their way out, Antonio noticed a commotion and saw that Ricardo Maglalang, a neighbor of the victim, was wounded. Antonio learned from the by-standers that Ricardo was likewise stabbed by accused-appellant. Upon reaching the hospital, Elsa was declared dead on arrival. Roger on the other hand was treated for the 5centimeter wound sustained by him on his right forearm. Accused-appellant's defense was INSANITY. Accused-appellant, then 30 years of age, was a resident of Barangay Tagumpay, Puerto Princesa City, and employed as provincial jail guard at the Palawan Provincial Jail. Sometime in January 1990, Pacita Valledor, his mother noticed that accused-appellant was behaving abnormally. For days he was restless and unable to sleep. He likewise complained that their neighbors were spreading rumors that he was a rapist and a thief. This prompted Pacita to bring his son to Dr. Deriomedes de Guzman, a medical practitioner. Pacita disclosed to Dr. de Guzman that insanity runs in their family. After examining accused-appellant, Dr. de Guzman diagnosed him as suffering from "psychosis with schizophrenia." He prescribed a depressant known as Thoracin, which kept accused-appellant sane for a period two months. Meanwhile, at around 2:00 in the afternoon of March 6, 1991, Pacita Valledor was awakened by her daughter who told her that accused-appellant has returned. She rushed out of the house and saw him standing in the middle of the road, dusty and dirty. She asked him where he came from but his answer was "Pinatay niya kayong lahat." Pacita dragged him inside the house and later learned that he killed and wounded their neighbors. Thirty minutes later, accused-appellant was arrested and detained at the city jail. RTC rendered the assailed judgment of conviction, the accused ENRICO A. VALLEDOR is hereby found guilty beyond reasonable doubt of the crimes of MURDER in Criminal Case No. 9359; of FRUSTRATED MURDER in Criminal Case No. 9489; and of ATTEMPTED MURDER in Criminal Case No. 9401 as charged herein. Accordingly he is hereby sentenced to suffer the penalty of reclusion perpetua in Criminal Case No. 9359; reclusion perpetua in Criminal Case No. 9489; and imprisonment of from EIGHT (8) YEARS and ONE (1) DAY to TEN (10) YEARS in Criminal Case No. 9401. It is understood that the accused shall serve these penalties successively or one after the other. The accused is also ordered to indemnify the heirs of the deceased victim Elsa Villon Rodriguez the sum of P50,000.00 and to indemnify the victim Roger Cabiguen, the sum of P14,000.00 as actual damages, and the sum P15,000.00 for loss of income.

Considering that the accused is found to be suffering from a serious mental disorder at present as certified to by the National Center for Mental Health, Mandaluyong City, Metro Manila, the service of his sentence is hereby ordered SUSPENDED pursuant to Article 12 and 79 of the Revised Penal Code. He (Enrico Valledor) is ordered shipped to and confined at the National Center for Mental Health, Mandaluyong City, Metro Manila, for his treatment, until such time that he becomes fit for the service of his sentence at the national penitentiary, Muntinlupa, Metro Manila. As to his civil liability, the same is subject to execution after this judgment shall have become final executory. SC: In considering a plea of insanity as a defense, the starting premise is that the law presumes all persons to be of sound mind. Otherwise stated, the law presumes all acts to be voluntary, and it is improper to presume that acts were done unconsciously. In the eyes of the law, insanity exists when there is a complete deprivation of intelligence in committing the act. Mere abnormality of the mental faculties will not exclude imputability. The accused must be "so insane as to be incapable of entertaining a criminal intent." He must be deprived of reason and act without the least discernment because there is a complete absence of the power to discern or a total deprivation of freedom of the will. Since the presumption is always in favor of sanity, he who invokes insanity as an exempting circumstance must prove it by clear and positive evidence. And the evidence on this point must refer to the time preceding the act under prosecution or to the very moment of its execution. In the case at bar, accused-appellant failed to discharge the burden of overcoming the presumption of sanity at the time of the commission of the crime. The following circumstances clearly and unmistakably show that accusedappellant was not legally insane when he perpetrated the acts for which he was charged: 1) Simplicio Yayen was positioned nearest to accused-appellant but the latter chose to stab Roger and Elsa; 2) Accused-appellant called out the nickname of Roger before stabbing him; 3) Simplicio Yayen and Antonio Magbanua who were likewise inside the room were left unharmed; 4) Accused-appellant, a spurned suitor of Elsa, uttered the words, "Ako akabales den, Elsa." (I had my revenge, Elsa) after stabbing her; and 5) Accused-appellant hurriedly left the room after stabbing the victims. Evidently, the foregoing acts could hardly be said to be performed by one who was in a state of a complete absence of the power to discern. Judging from his acts, accused-appellant was clearly aware and in control of what he was doing as he in fact purposely chose to stab only the two victims. Two other people were also inside the room, one of them was nearest to the door where accused-appellant emerged, but the latter went for the victims. His obvious motive of revenge against the victims was accentuated by calling out their names and uttering the words, "I had my revenge" after stabbing them. Finally, his act of immediately fleeing from the scene after the incident indicates that he was aware of the wrong he has done and the consequence thereof. the decision of the Regional Trial Court of Palawan and Puerto Princesa City, Branch 47, was MODIFIED 1. In Criminal Case No. 9359, accused-appellant Enrico A. Valledor is hereby found guilty beyond reasonable doubt of the crime of murder and is sentenced to suffer the penalty of reclusion perpetua; and to indemnify the heirs of the deceased Elsa Rodriguez the following amounts: P50,000.00 as civil indemnity, P50,000.00 as moral damages and P29,250.00 as actual damages; 2. In Criminal Case No. 9489, accused-appellant is found guilty beyond reasonable doubt only of the crime of attempted murder and is sentenced to an indeterminate penalty of four (4) years and two (2) months of prision correccional, as minimum, to eight (8) years of prision mayor, as maximum; and to indemnify Roger Cabiguen in the amount of P10,000.00 by way of temperate damages; 3. In Criminal Case No. 9401, accused-appellant is found guilty beyond reasonable doubt of the crime of attempted murder and is sentenced to an indeterminate penalty of four (4) years and two (2) months of prision correccional, as minimum, to eight (8) years of prision mayor, as maximum.