CRIMINAL LAW CASE DIGEST/ BASAN V. PEOPLE, 61 SCRA 275

BASAN V. PEOPLE,

61 SCRA 275 

TOPIC/DOCTRINE

Under the Indeterminate Sentence Law (Act No. 4103, as amended), if the offense is punishable under the Revised Penal Code, the minimum penalty should be within any of the periods of the penalty next lower in degree to that prescribed by law, and the maximum thereof should be within the proper period of the penalty that may be imposed were the sentence a straight penalty.

FACTS

Petitioner Francisco Basan y Gobot was charged with two (2) homicides in Criminal Cases Nos. 704 and 705 of the Court of First Instance of Camarines Sur. Upon arraignment the petitioner pleaded guilty in each case but invoked the mitigating circumstances of voluntary surrender and plea of guilty which the prosecution did not contest. He was sentenced to serve an indeterminate penalty of from six (6) years and one (1) day of prision mayor, as minimum, to ten (10) years of prision mayor, as maximum, to indemnify the heirs of the deceased in the sum of P15,000.00, and to pay the costs.

ISSUE

Is the Penalty proper.

RULING

No.

The court held that under the Indeterminate Sentence Law (Act No. 4103, as amended), if the offense is punishable under the Revised Penal Code, the minimum penalty should be within any of the periods of the penalty next lower in degree to that prescribed by law, and the maximum thereof should be within the proper period of the penalty that may be imposed were the sentence a straight penalty.

Here, the court held that the minimum of the indeterminate sentence that should have been imposed upon the petitioner for each of the two offenses should be within the range of from six (6) months and one (1) day to six (6), years, and the maximum should have been within the range of from eight (8) years and one (1) day to ten (10) years, the medium period of prision mayor, which should be the proper penalty, considering that the two mitigating circumstances have already been taken into account in reducing the penalty by one degree lower.

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