G.R. No.

L-55309, February 22, 1982

THE PEOPLE OF THE PHILIPPINES, plaintiff-appellee v. ALBERTO ABREA y ARANCON,

defendant-appellant

FACTS:

Appellant Alberto Abrea, an escapee from the Davao Prison and Penal Farm and under
temporary detention at Zamboanga del Norte Provincial Jail, was charged of murder by inflicting
a stab wound upon the victim, Anatalio Coca, another inmate of said provincial jail, who,
according to an eyewitness, was stabbed from behind while in the act of receiving his food
ration from another detention prisoner, as a result of which he died. During the arraignment,
Accused-appellant entered a plea of guilty, but before the trial court received the evidence for
the prosecution, he was informed of the probability of a verdict of death and was allowed to
withdraw such plea if that be his desire. Appellant Abrea, however, held on to his original plea of
guilty, but hastened to ask the court that he be accorded leniency in the imposition of the
penalty. The trial court found appellant guilty as charged and sentenced him to death, the felony
having been committed while appellant was serving sentence by virtue of a final judgment and
attended by the aggravating circumstances of treachery and evident premeditation.

ISSUE:

W/N the lower court erred in imposing the death penalty on the accused on the ground that
there is absence of evident premeditation

HOLDING:

The Supreme Court held that notwithstanding the mitigating circumstance of the plea of guilty in
the appellant’s favor and the absence of evident premeditation, the correct penalty is still death,
for the appellant is a quasi- recidivist and being such, Article 160 of the Revised Penal Code
mandates the imposition of "the maximum period of the penalty prescribed by law for the new
felony" and according to Article 248 of the same code; murder is punishable by reclusion
temporal in its maximum period to death.

Judgment affirmed, but for lack of the required number of votes, the death penalty was reduced
to reclusion perpetua.