THIRD DIVISION
[G.R. No. 252609. October 6, 2021.]
PEOPLE OF THE PHILIPPINES, plaintiff-appellee, vs.REYNALDO VIVAR y LACAP @ "REY", accused-appellant.
NOTICE
Sirs/Mesdames :
Please take notice that the Court, Third Division, issued a Resolution datedOctober 6, 2021, which reads as follows:
"G.R. No. 252609 — PEOPLE OF THE PHILIPPINES, plaintiff-appellee, vs. REYNALDO VIVAR Y LACAP @ "REY," accused-appellant. — The Court of Appeals elevated the records of the case to this Court on July 3, 2020 1 pursuant to its August 20, 2019 Resolution, 2 which gave due course to the Notice of Appeal 3 filed by accused-appellant Reynaldo Vivar y Lacap (Vivar), also known as "Rey."
In a September 14, 2020 Resolution, 4 this Court noted the records of this case forwarded by the Court of Appeals and required the parties to file their respective supplemental briefs.
The Office of the Solicitor General 5 and accused-appellant 6 filed separate Manifestations stating that they would no longer file supplemental briefs and would instead adopt the briefs they filed before the Court of Appeals.
After an evaluation of the records of this case, this Court resolves to DISMISS the appeal of accused-appellant for his failure to sufficiently show reversible error in the assailed Court of Appeals Decision 7 warranting the exercise of this Court's appellate jurisdiction. CAIHTE
Accordingly, this Court affirms the conviction of accused-appellant Vivar for one (1) count of statutory rape under Article 266-A, paragraph 1 of the Revised Penal Code and the imposition of reclusion perpetua. As to his civil liabilities for the crime of statutory rape, this Court reduces the award of damages to P75,000.00 as civil indemnity, P75,000.00 as moral damages, and P75,000.00 as exemplary damages in accordance with People v. Jugueta. 8 Finally, all damages shall earn interest at the rate of 6% per annum from the date of the finality of judgment until fully paid. 9
WHEREFORE, the guilt of accused-appellant REYNALDO VIVAR Y LACAP @ "REY" having been proved beyond reasonable doubt, his conviction for statutory rape by the court a quo is AFFIRMED with MODIFICATION as follows:
a. Accused-appellant Reynaldo Vivar y Lacap is hereby held GUILTY beyond reasonable doubt under Article 266-A (1) (d) of the Revised Penal Code and is sentenced to suffer the penalty of reclusion perpetua, and ordered to pay private complainant P75,000.00 as civil indemnity, P75,000.00 as moral damages, and P75,000.00 as exemplary damages.
b. Accused-appellant is further ordered to pay private complainant interest on all damages awarded at the legal rate of six percent (6%) per annum from the date of finality of this Resolution until fully paid.
SO ORDERED."
By authority of the Court:
(SGD.) MISAEL DOMINGO C. BATTUNG IIIDivision Clerk of Court
Footnotes
1. Rollo, p. 1.
2. Id. at 16.
3. CA rollo, pp. 104-105.
4. Rollo, pp. 18-19.
5. Id. at 26-31.
6. Id. at 21-25.
7. Id. at 3-14. The July 10, 2019 Decision in CA-G.R. CR-HC No. 10294 was penned by Associate Justice Ruben Reynaldo G. Roxas and concurred in by Associate Justices Marlene Gonzales-Sison and Victoria Isabel A. Paredes of the Twelfth Division of the Court of Appeals, Manila.
8. 783 Phil. 806 (2016) [Per J. Peralta, En Banc].
9. Nacar v. Gallery Frames, 716 Phil. 267 (2013) [Per J. Peralta, En Banc].