Ariel C.

Nacion

Case assigned under: Art. 3, par 1., on the definition of felony

Title: People of the Philippines vs Fausta Gonzales, et. al

Facts:

In a charge of murder against several accused, including accused-appellant Custodio Gonzales, Jr., the
prosecution’s case rested on the testimony of the lone eyewitness Jose Huntoria; that the latter claimed
to have witnessed the killing of Lloyd Peñacerrada; that he positively identified all the accused, including
Custodio Gonzales, Jr.; but that he could not say who was hacking and who was stabbing the deceased
as the assailants were moving around the victim.

With the exception of Rogelio Lanida who eluded arrest and has remained at large and not yet arraigned,
the trial court found all accused guilty beyond reasonable doubt of the crime of murder, which conviction
was affirmed by the Court of Appeals, on appeal by Custodio Gonzales, Jr.

Issue:

Whether or not Custodio Gonzales, Jr. committed a felony

Ruling:

No, Custodio Gonzales, Jr did not commit a felony.

Art. 3, par. 1 of the Revised Penal Code provides that “Acts and omissions punishable by law are felonies
(delitos)”. Thus, the elements of felonies in general, according to the Court, are: (1) there must be an or
omission; (2) the act or omission must be punishable under the Revised Penal Code; and (3) the act is
performed or the omission performed incurred by means of deceit or fault. The “act” must also be
understood as any bodily movement tending to produce some effect in the external world, and must be
shown to have inflicted any harm to the body of the victim that produced his death.

In this case, Hundoria admitted quite candidly that he did not see who “stabbed” or who “hacked” the
victim. He did not say, because he could not, whether accused-appellant Custodio Gonzales, Jr. “hacked”
or “stabbed” the victim. In fact, he does not know what specific act was performed by the appellant. For
lack of specificity, the case fell short of the test laid down by Art. 3 of the Revised Penal Code. Thus,
accused-appellant Custodio Gonzales, Jr. did not commit a felony.

The decision of the Court of Appeals is reversed and set aside.