Beruflich Dokumente
Kultur Dokumente
Facts:
Rocaberte and two others were charged with the crime of theft.
The Information states:
That on or about the period from 1977 to December 28, 1983
at the of ofshore of West Canayaon, municipal of GarciaHernandez, province of Bohol, Philippines, the above-named
accused, conspiring, confederating and helping each other,
with intent to gain and without the consent of the owner, did
then and there, willfully, unlawfully and feloniously
take, steal and carry away the following properties...
Rocaberte moved to quash the information, alleging that the
statement of the time of commission of the felony charged,
"from 1977 to December 1983, a period of 7 years," or "about
2,551 days," was fatally defective; there was "so great a gap
as to defy approximation in the commission of one and the
same ofense"; "the variance is certainly unfair to the
accused for it violates their constitutional right to be informed
before the trial of the specific charge against them and
deprives them of the opportunity to defend themselves. The
trial court denied the motion. Hence, the appeal.
Issue:
Is a defect in the averment as to the time of the commission of
the crime charged a ground for a motion to quash?
Held:
The rules of criminal procedure declare that a complaint or
information is sufficient if it states the approximate time of the
commission of the ofense. Where, however, the statement of
the time of the commission of the ofense is so general as to
span a number of years, i.e., "between October, 1910 to
August, 1912," it has been held to be fatally defective because
it deprives the accused an opportunity to prepare his defense.
A defect in the averment as to the time of the commission of
the crime charged is not, however, a ground for a motion to
quash under Rule 116 of the Rules of Court. Even if it were, a
motion for quashal on that account will be denied since the
defect is one that can be cured by amendment.
The remedy against an indictment that fails to allege the time
of the commission of the ofense with sufficient definiteness is
a motion for a bill of particulars.
The information against Rocaberte is indeed seriously
defective. It places on him and his co-accused the unfair and
unreasonable burden of having to recall their activities over a
span of more than 2,500 days. It is a burden nobody should be
made to bear. The public prosecutor must make more definite
and particular the time of the commission of the crime of theft
attributed to Rocaberte and his co-defendants. If he cannot,
the prosecution cannot be maintained, the case must be
dismissed.
People V Lizada
FACTS: Lizada is being charged with 4 counts of raping his
stepdaughter (first rape occurred when she was about 11 yrs
old). TC and CA found him guilty. On appeal to the SC, Lizada
assails the information against him for violating Rule 110,
Section 11 of the Revised Rules on CrimPro because the phrase
on or about August 1998"stated in the information is too
indefinite. SC says the failure to specify the exact date when it
was committed does not make the Information defective
because the gravamen of rape is not the date and time of its
commission, but the carnal knowledge under any of the
circumstances in RPC 335.