SECOND DIVISION
[G.R. No. 201569. August 27, 2014.]
PEOPLE OF THE PHILIPPINES, plaintiff-appellee, vs. ROGELIO LUCENA, SR., RUEL LUCENA AND JIMBOY LUCENA A.K.A. ROGELIO LUCENA, JR., accused-appellants.
NOTICE
Sirs/Mesdames :
Please take notice that the Court, Second Division, issued a Resolution dated 27 August 2014 which reads as follows:
G.R. No. 201569 — People of the Philippines, plaintiff-appellee, v. Rogelio Lucena, Sr.,1Ruel Lucena and Jimboy Lucena a.k.a. Rogelio Lucena, Jr., accused-appellants.
After a careful review of the records of the case, the Court finds the appeal to be lacking in merit. Both the Regional Trial Court of Agoo, La Union, Branch 32 and the Court of Appeals correctly found appellants Ruel Lucena and Jimboy Lucena a.k.a. Rogelio Lucena, Jr. guilty beyond reasonable doubt of the crime of murder for the killing of Renato Lucena, Jr. qualified by abuse of superior strength and accordingly sentenced them to suffer the penalty of reclusion perpetua. Moreover, appellants are not eligible for parole pursuant to Section 3 of Republic Act No. 9346 or the Act Prohibiting the Imposition of Death Penalty in the Philippines. The awards of civil indemnity in the amount of P75,000.00 and moral damages in the amount of P50,000.00 are proper. The award of exemplary damages, however, must be increased to P30,000.00 in line with prevailing jurisprudence. As regards the award of actual damages in the amount of P18,000.00, the same must be modified. Both the trial court and the appellate court awarded P18,000.00 as actual damages because this is the only amount covered by a receipt. However, as we held in People v. Villanueva, 2 "when actual damages proven by receipts during the trial amount to less than P25,000.00, as in this case, the award of temperate damages of P25,000.00 is justified in lieu of actual damages of a lesser amount." Accordingly, we grant temperate damages in the amount of P25,000.00 in lieu of actual damages. In addition, all damages awarded shall earn interest at the rate of 6% per annum from date of finality of judgment until fully paid.
As regards Rogelio Lucena, Sr., we note that he died during the pendency of this case. "Considering that no final judgment had been rendered against him at the time of his death, whether or not he was guilty of the crime charged had become irrelevant because even assuming that he did incur criminal liability and civil liability ex delicto, these were totally extinguished by his death, following Article 89 (1) of the Revised Penal Code and, by analogy, our ruling in People v. Bayotas." 3 Therefore, Criminal Case No. A-5593 should be dismissed with respect to him.
WHEREFORE, the assailed November 28, 2011 Decision of the Court of Appeals in CA-G.R.-CR-HC No. 03982 finding appellants Ruel Lucena and Jimboy Lucena a.k.a. Rogelio Lucena, Jr. guilty beyond reasonable doubt of the crime of murder and sentencing them to suffer the penalty of reclusion perpetua and ordering them to pay the heirs of Renato Lucena, Jr. P75,000.00 as civil indemnity and P50,000.00 as moral damages is AFFIRMED with MODIFICATIONS that appellants are not eligible for parole; they are ordered to pay the heirs of Renato Lucena, Jr. P30,000.00 as exemplary damages; the award of actual damages is deleted; in lieu thereof, appellants are ordered to pay the heirs of the victim P25,000.00 as temperate damages; all with interest at the rate of 6% per annum from date of finality of judgment until full payment. cDTHIE
Criminal Case No. A-5593 is ordered DISMISSED with respect to Rogelio Lucena, Sr. in view of his death during the pendency of this case. (Reyes J., designated Acting Member in view of the leave of absence of Brion, J. per Special Order No. 1763 dated August 26, 2014).
SO ORDERED.
Very truly yours,
(SGD.) MA. LOURDES C. PERFECTODivision Clerk of Court
Footnotes
1. Also referred to as Rogelio Lucena in some parts of the records.
2. 456 Phil. 14, 29 (2003).
3. People v. Dadao, G.R. No. 201860, January 22, 2014. Citation omitted.