Peolpe vs. Tica (2017)

PEOPLE OF THE PHILIPPINES vs. JONATHAN TICA

G.R. No. 222561, August 30, 2017 

PERALTA, J:

Facts: Accused-appellant Jonathan Tica was indicted for Murder in stabbing Eduardo Intia. Prosecution witnesses told that they saw Intia sitting while facing the seashore and they noticed Tica passed by, holding a knife and proceeding towards Intia. When he went near him, the latter tried to stand up and run away, but he fell down to the sea face up. He was immediately stabbed about six times while Tica was on top of him.

In his claim for self-defense, Tica claimed he saw Intia running towards him to attack. Upon seeing that Intia brought with him a long-necked bottle with broken edges, Tica tried to evade by swimming towards the sea. They submerged themselves in the seawater while grappling with each other. Tica held Intia’s feet until he reached the latter's left waistline and held his knife, which he used to stab him on his left breast. As a result, Intia released Tica, who, upon standing up, again stabbed him.

Issue: Whether or not accused-appellant may validly claim self-defense.

Ruling: No. The essential elements of self-defense are the following: (1) unlawful aggression12 on the part of the victim, (2) reasonable necessity of the means employed to prevent or repel such aggression, and (3) lack of sufficient provocation on the part of the person defending himself.

If indeed the victim had a knife tucked in his waistline, he could have made use of it instead of the broken bottle just to ensure the death of the accused if ever. He could have stabbed the accused instead of drowning him first. Even assuming that the unlawful aggression emanated from Intia, the means employed by Tica was not reasonably commensurate to the nature and extent of the alleged attack that he sought to prevent. In this case, Intia was unarmed when he allegedly attacked Tica. Considering that Tica is taller, had a bigger body built, and younger than Intia, he could have simply engaged him in a fistfight. Instead, using his own knife, Tica chose to fatally stab Intia about six times, which caused the victim’s eventual death.

Ratio Decidendi: Unlawful aggression is a conditio sine qua non for upholding the justifying circumstance of self-defense; if there is nothing to prevent or repel, the other two requisites of self-defense will have no basis.

Gist: This is an appeal from the Decision of the Court of Appeals, which affirmed with modifications the Decision of the Regional Trial Court, Branch 17, Cagayan de Oro City.