455 Phil. 829
AUSTRIA-MARTINEZ, J.:
ACCORDINGLY, by virtue of his voluntary plea of guilty, judgment is hereby rendered as follows:Three separate Informations[3] were filed with the trial court on October 27, 1998 charging appellant with the crime of rape, thus:
In Criminal Case No. 6178-98-C, this Court finds accused Rufino Ernas y Florentino (sic) GUILTY beyond reasonable doubt of the crime of rape as defined and penalized under Article 335 of the Revised Penal Code, as amended, and hereby sentences him to suffer the penalty of death.
Accused is further directed to indemnify the victim AAA the sum of FIFTY THOUSAND (P50,000.00) PESOS as moral damages.
In Crim. Case No. 6179-98-C, this Court finds accused Rufino Ernas y Florentino(sic) GUILTY beyond reasonable doubt of the crime of rape as defined and penalized under Article 335 of the Revised Penal Code, as amended, and hereby sentences him to suffer the penalty of death.
Accused is further directed to indemnify the victim BBB the sum of FIFTY THOUSAND (P50,000.00) PESOS as moral damages.
In Crim. Case No. 6180-98-C, this Court finds accused Rufino Ernas y Florentino(sic) GUILTY beyond reasonable doubt of the crime of rape as defined and penalized under Article 335 of the Revised Penal Code, as amended, and hereby sentences him to suffer the penalty of death.
Accused is further directed to indemnify the victim BBB the sum of FIFTY THOUSAND (P50,000.00) PESOS as moral damages.
With costs against the accused in all cases.
SO ORDERED.[2]
That on or about May 11, 1998, at Tramo, Brgy. Masile, Municipality of Calamba, Province of Laguna and within the jurisdiction of this Honorable Court, the above-named accused, with lewd design and thru force and intimidation and with intent to satisfy his lust, did then and there willfully, unlawfully and feloniously have carnal knowledge of his daughter AAA, 14 years old, against her will and consent.Upon his arraignment on November 13, 1998, appellant, duly assisted by his counsel, Atty. Rodel Paderayon, entered a separate plea of not guilty[7] to each of the three charges.
CONTRARY TO LAW.[4]Crim. Case No. 6179-98-C
That on or about September 21, 1998, at Tramo, Brgy. Masile, Municpality of Calamba, Province of Laguna and within the jurisdiction of this Honorable Court, the above-named accused, with lewd design and thru force and intimidation and with intent to satisy (sic) his lust, did then and there willfully, unlawfully and feloniously have carnal knowledge of his daughter BBB, 15 years old, against her will and consent.
CONTRARY TO LAW.[5]Crim. Case No. 6180-98-C
That on or about September 18, 1998, at Tramo, Brgy. Masile, Municipality of Calamba, Province of Laguna and within the jurisdiction of this Honorable Court, the above-named accused, with lewd design and thru force and intimidation and with intent to satisfy his lust, did then and there willfully, unlawfully and feloniously have carnal knowledge of his daughter BBB, 15 years old, against her will and consent.
CONTRARY TO LAW.[6]
(1) the accused is the father of the complaining witness (sic);At the initial hearing held on January 13, 1999, Atty. Eloida Capuno, counsel for the appellant, manifested the intention of her client to withdraw his former plea of not guilty. The Court then inquired from appellant whether he confirms the manifestation of his counsel, as follows:
(2) that the private complainants AAA and BBB were both medically examined and the findings are reflected in the Medico-Legal Certificate;
(3) the existence of the Medico-Legal Certificate;
(4) the identity of the accused; and
(5) the existence of the Sworn Statements.
No admissions were made by the prosecution.
COURT:Thereafter, the Court granted the motion to withdraw his former plea and ordered the re-arraignment of appellant. The three Informations were again read to him in Tagalog, a language spoken, read and understood by him, who, with the assistance of Atty. Capuno, voluntarily pleaded guilty to the three counts of rape. The Court then propounded additional questions to appellant, as follows:
Do You confirm the statement of your counsel that you are withdrawing your former plea of not guilty and enter a voluntary plea of guilty to the three counts of rape filed against you.
A: Yes, your honor.[10]
With the plea of guilty entered by the appellant on the three counts of rape, the prosecution opted to dispense with the direct testimony of the complaining witnesses and formally offered the following exhibits:
COURT: Q: Rufino Ernas y Florentino (sic) are you fully aware of the consequences of your voluntary plea of guilty to these three (3) counts of rape?A: Yes, your honor. Q: You have not been threatened, intimidated or coerced into withdrawing your former plea of not guilty and in lieu thereof enter a plea of guilty to these three (3) counts of rape?A: No, your honor. Q: You are fully aware and advised by your counsel that despite your plea of guilty you will still be meted the maximum penalty of death?A: Yes, your honor. Q: You fully admit that on or about May 11, 1998 at Tramo, Brgy. Masili,[11] Municipality of Calamba, Province of Laguna, you had carnal knowledge of your daughter AAA, 14 years old, against her will and consent?A: Yes, your honor. Q: You fully admit that on September 21, 1998 at Tramo, Brgy. Masili, Municipality of Calamba, Province of Laguna, you had carnal knowledge of your daughter BBB, 15 years old, against her will and consent?A: Yes, sir. Q: You also fully admit that on or about September 18, 1998 at Tramo, Brgy. Masili, Municipality of Calamba, Province of Laguna, you had carnal knowledge of your daughter BBB, 15 years old, against her will and consent?A: Yes, your honor.[12]
On January 14, 1999, the trial court rendered its joint judgment finding appellant guilty of three counts of rape and sentenced him to the supreme penalty of death for each case.
Crim. Case No. 6178-98-CExhibit "A" - Complaint filed with the Municipal Trial Court of Calamba, Laguna by complainant AAA;Exhibit "B" - Sworn Statement of complainant AAA; Exhibit "B-1" - Sworn Statement of Ester Ernas; Exhibit "B-2" - Sworn Statement of Rosemarie Usi; and Exhibit "C" - Medico-Legal Certificate. Crim. Case No. 6179-98-C and 6180-98-CExhibit "A" - Complaint filed with the Municipal Trial Court of Calamba, Laguna by complainant BBB;Exhibit "A-1" - Sworn Statement of complainant BBB; and Exhibit "B" - Medico-Legal Certificate.[13]
THE TRIAL COURT ERRED IN NOT REQUIRING THE PROSECUTION TO PROVE THE GUILT OF ACCUSED DESPITE THE PLEA OF GUILTY TO A CAPITAL OFFENSE.[14]Appellant claims that aside from conducting a searching inquiry into the voluntariness and full comprehension of the consequences of his pleas, the trial court should have also required the prosecution to prove his guilt to determine the precise degree of his culpability as mandated under Section 3 of Rule 116 of the Revised Rules of Court.
"Sec. 3. Plea of guilty to capital offense; reception of evidence. - When the accused pleads guilty to a capital offense, the court shall conduct a searching inquiry into the voluntariness and full comprehension of the consequences of his plea and shall require the prosecution to prove his guilt and the precise degree of his culpability. The accused may present evidence in his behalf."Under the rule, three things are enjoined of the trial court after a plea of guilty to a capital offense has been entered by the accused: (1) To conduct a searching inquiry into the voluntariness and full comprehension of the consequences of his plea; (2) To require the prosecution to present evidence to prove the guilt of the accused and the precise degree of his culpability; and (3) To inquire from the accused if he desires to present evidence on his behalf and allow him to do so if he desires.[15] This procedure is mandatory, and a judge who fails to observe it commits a grave abuse of discretion.[16] The rationale behind the rule is that the courts must proceed with more care where the possible punishment is in its severest form, namely death, for the reason that the execution of such a sentence is irrevocable and experience has shown that innocent persons have at times pleaded guilty.[17] The primordial purpose is to avoid improvident pleas of guilt on the part of an accused where grave crimes are involved since he might be admitting his guilt before the court and thus forfeit his life and liberty without having fully understood the meaning, significance and consequence of his plea.[18] Moreover, the requirement of taking further evidence would aid this Court on appellate review in determining the propriety or impropriety of the plea.[19]
Tested with the above guidelines which were enunciated in earlier cases prior to the date of rendition of new assailed decision of the trial court, the questions propounded and the proceedings taken by the trial court were not sufficient to apprise appellant of the consequences of his plea of guilty.
- Ascertain from the accused himself (a) how he was brought into the custody of the law; (b) whether he had the assistance of a competent counsel during the custodial and preliminary investigations; and (c) under what conditions he was detained and interrogated during the investigations. This is intended to rule out the possibility that the accused has been coerced or placed under a state of duress either by actual threats of physical harm coming from malevolent quarters[21] or simply because of the judge's intimidating robes.[22]
- Ask the defense counsel a series of questions as to whether he had conferred with, and completely explained to, the accused the meaning and consequences of a plea of guilty.[23]
- Elicit information about the personality profile of the accused, such as his age, socio-economic status, and educational background, which may serve as a trustworthy index of his capacity to give a free and informed plea of guilty.[24]
- Inform the accused the exact length of imprisonment or nature of the penalty under the law and the certainty that he will serve such sentence. For not infrequently, an accused pleads guilty in the hope of a lenient treatment or upon bad advice or because of promises of the authorities or parties of a lighter penalty should he admit guilt or express remorse. It is the duty of the judge to ensure that the accused does not labor under these mistaken impressions because a plea of guilty carries with it not only the admission of authorship of the crime proper but also of the aggravating circumstances attending it, that increase punishment.[25]
- Inquire if the accused knows the crime with which he is charged and fully explain to him the elements of the crime which is the basis of his indictment.[26] Failure of the court to do so would constitute a violation of his fundamental right to be informed of the precise nature of the accusation against him and a denial of his right to due process.[27]
- All questions posed to the accused should be in a language known and understood by the latter.[28]
- The trial judge must satisfy himself that the accused, in pleading guilty, is truly guilty. The accused must be required to narrate the tragedy or reenact the crime or furnish its missing details.[29]
... the presentation of evidence should be required in order to preclude any room for reasonable doubt in the mind of the trial court, or the Supreme Court on review, as to the possibility that there might have been some misunderstanding on the part of the accused as to the nature of the charge to which he pleaded guilty, and to ascertain the circumstances attendant to the commission of the crime which justify or require the exercise of a greater or lesser degree of severity in the imposition of the prescribed penalties.[31]It must be stressed that under the 1985 Rules of Criminal Procedure, a conviction in capital offenses cannot rest alone on a plea of guilt. The prosecution evidence must be sufficient to sustain a judgment of conviction independently of the plea of guilt.[32]