This case has been cited 1 times or more.
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2001-08-16 |
BUENA, J. |
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| With respect to the penalty, at the time of the commission of the crime, murder was punishable by reclusion perpetua to death. However, there being neither aggravating nor mitigating circumstance, the lower penalty which is reclusion perpetua shall be imposed in accordance with Article 63 of the Revised Penal Code. Besides, even if the crime at bar is attended by an aggravating circumstance, the death penalty cannot be imposed on appellants since the 1987 Constitution proscribes the imposition thereof to crimes committed prior to its reimposition under R. A. No. 7659 on December 31, 1993. The case at bar occurred in 1988. Moreover, based on the principle of prospective application of penal laws (unless the contrary clearly appears from the statute)[18] as well as on the rule that a subsequent statute cannot be so applied retroactively as to impair a right that accrued under the old law,[19] reclusion perpetua is the proper penalty. On the civil liability, appellants having acted in conspiracy, their liability in favor of the heirs of the victim is accordingly joint and solidary. Record shows that the sum of P15,000.00 was incurred as actual damages. The award of P50,000.00 as moral damages should be properly designated as civil indemnity. | |||||