The People of the Philippines, plaintiff-appellee vs Nicolas Jaurigue and Avelina Jaurigue, defendants. Avelina Jaurigue, appellant.
FACTS: Nicolas Jaurigue and Avelina Jaurigue were prosecuted in the Court of First Instance of Tayabas, for the crime of murder, of which Nicolas Jaurigue was acquitted, but defendant Avelina Jaurigue was found guilty of homicide and sentenced to an indeterminate penalty ranging from seven years, four months and one day of prision mayorto thirteen years, nine months and eleven days of reclusion temporal, with the accessory penalties provided by law, to indemnify the heirs of the deceased, Amando Capina, in the sum of P2,000, and to pay one-half of the costs. She was also credited with one-half of the period of preventive imprisonment suffered by her. From said judgment of conviction, defendant Avelina Jaurigue appealed to the Court of Appeals for Southern Southern Luzon. On September 20, 1942, at around 8o’clock in the evening, Nicolas Jaurigue went to the chapel of the Seventh Day Adventists o attend religious services. Avelina Jaurigue entered the chapel shortly after the arrival of her father, also for the purpose of attending religious services, Upon observing the presence of Avelina Jaurigue, Amado Capina went to the bench on which Avelina was sitting and sat by her right side, and, without saying a word, Amado, with the greatest of impudence, placed his hand on the upper part of her right thigh. Avelina Jaurigue, Jaurigue, conscious conscious of her her personal personal dignity and honor, honor, pulled out out with her right right hand the fan knife which she had in a pocket of her dress, with the intention of punishing Amado's offending offending hand. hand. Amado Amado seized seized Avelina's Avelina's right hand, hand, but she quickly quickly grabbed the knife with her left hand and stabbed Amado once at the base of the left side of the neck, inflicting upon him a wound about 4 1/2 inches deep, which was necessarily mortal. Fearing that Amado's relatives might retaliate, barrio lieutenant Lozada advised Nicolas Jaurigue and herein defendant and appellant to go home immediately, to close their doors and windows and not to admit anybody into the house, unless accompanied by him. Then three policemen arrived in their house, at about 10 o'clock that night, and questioned them about the incident, defendant and appellant immediately surrendered the knife marked as Exhibit B, and informed said policemen briefly of what had actually happened
ISSUES: Whether or not the lower court erred in (1) not holding said appellant had acted in the legitimate defense of her honor, (2) in not finding in her favor additional mitigating circumstances, and (3) in holding that the commission of the alleged offense attended by aggravating circumstance.
HELD: In the mind of the court, there is not the least doubt that, in stabbing to death the deceased Amado Capina, in the manner and form and under the circumstances above indicated, the defendant and appellant committed the crime of homicide, with no aggravating circumstance whatsoever, but with at least three mitigating circumstances of a qualified character to be considered in her favor. Said chapel where the incident took place was lighted with electric lights and there were several people inside; under the circumstances, there was and there could be no possibility of her being raped. The means employed by her in the defense of her honor was evidently excessive; and under the facts and circumstances of the case, she cannot
be legally declared completely exempt from criminal liability.
The facts that the defendant and appellant (1) immediately, voluntarily and unconditionally surrendered and admitted having stabbed the deceased, (2) had acted in the immediate vindication of grave offense committed against her, (3) had not intended to kill the deceased but merely wanted to punish his offending hand, be considered as mitigating circumstances. Defendant and appellant Avelina Jaurigue is hereby sentenced to an indeterminate penalty ranging from two months and one day of arresto mayor, as minimum, to two years, four months, and one day of prision correccional, as maximum, with the accessory penalties prescribed by law, to indemnify the heirs of the deceased Amado Capina, in the sum of P2,000, and to suffer the corresponding subsidiary imprisonment, not to exceed 1/3 of the principal penalty, in case of insolvency, and to pay the costs. Defendant and appellant should also be given the benefit of 1/2 of her preventive imprisonment, and the knife marked ordered confiscated.
