Except in cases of impeachment, or as otherwise provided in this Constitution, the President may grant reprieves, commutations and pardons, and remit fines and forfeitures, after conviction by final judgment.
He shall also have the power to grant amnesty with the concurrence of a majority of all the Members of the Congress. (Sec. 19, Art. VII, 1987 Constitution) |
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Patriarca, a member of the NPA, was charged with the crime of murder for the death of Alfredo Arevalo docketed as Criminal Case No. 2773. He was also charged with murder for the killing of one Rudy de Borja and a certain Elmer Cadag under Informations docketed as Criminal Cases Nos. 2665 and 2672, respectively. In 1998, the RTC found him guilty in Criminal Case No. 2773 and sentenced him to suffer the penalty of reclusion perpetua. Patriarca appealed the decision to the SC.
Patriarca applied for amnesty under Proclamation No. 724 granting amnesty to rebels and admitted his participation in the liquidation of Arevalo, De Borja and Cadag. In 1999, his application was favorably granted by the National Amnesty Board concluding that his activities were done in pursuit of his political beliefs.
Patriarca applied for amnesty under Proclamation No. 724 granting amnesty to rebels and admitted his participation in the liquidation of Arevalo, De Borja and Cadag. In 1999, his application was favorably granted by the National Amnesty Board concluding that his activities were done in pursuit of his political beliefs.
Issue:
What is the effect of the grant of amnesty to the conviction of the accused-appellant?
Held:
Amnesty commonly denotes a general pardon to rebels for their treason or other high political offenses, or the forgiveness which one sovereign grants to the subjects of another, who have offended, by some breach, the law of nations. Amnesty looks backward, and abolishes and puts into oblivion, the offense itself; it so overlooks and obliterates the offense with which he is charged, that the person released by amnesty stands before the law precisely as though he had committed no offense.
Paragraph 3 of Article 89 of the Revised Penal Code provides that criminal liability is totally extinguished by amnesty, which completely extinguishes the penalty and all its effects.
This Court takes judicial notice of the grant of amnesty upon accused-appellant Jose N. Patriarca, Jr. Once granted, it is binding and effective. It serves to put an end to the appeal.
WHEREFORE, the decision of the Regional Trial Court at Sorsogon, Sorsogon, Branch 52 in Criminal Case No. 2773 is REVERSED and SET ASIDE. Accused-appellant Jose N. Patriarca, Jr. is hereby ACQUITTED of the crime of murder. Pursuant to Resolution No. D-99-8683, Criminal Case Nos. 2663 and 2664, which are both filed in the Regional Trial Court, Branch 53, Sorsogon, Sorsogon, are ordered DISMISSED. The release of Jose N. Patriarca who is presently detained at the Provincial Jail of Sorsogon is likewise ORDERED unless he is being detained for some other legal cause. (People vs. Patriarca, Jr. G.R. No. 135457, September 29, 2000)
Amnesty commonly denotes a general pardon to rebels for their treason or other high political offenses, or the forgiveness which one sovereign grants to the subjects of another, who have offended, by some breach, the law of nations. Amnesty looks backward, and abolishes and puts into oblivion, the offense itself; it so overlooks and obliterates the offense with which he is charged, that the person released by amnesty stands before the law precisely as though he had committed no offense.
Paragraph 3 of Article 89 of the Revised Penal Code provides that criminal liability is totally extinguished by amnesty, which completely extinguishes the penalty and all its effects.
This Court takes judicial notice of the grant of amnesty upon accused-appellant Jose N. Patriarca, Jr. Once granted, it is binding and effective. It serves to put an end to the appeal.
WHEREFORE, the decision of the Regional Trial Court at Sorsogon, Sorsogon, Branch 52 in Criminal Case No. 2773 is REVERSED and SET ASIDE. Accused-appellant Jose N. Patriarca, Jr. is hereby ACQUITTED of the crime of murder. Pursuant to Resolution No. D-99-8683, Criminal Case Nos. 2663 and 2664, which are both filed in the Regional Trial Court, Branch 53, Sorsogon, Sorsogon, are ordered DISMISSED. The release of Jose N. Patriarca who is presently detained at the Provincial Jail of Sorsogon is likewise ORDERED unless he is being detained for some other legal cause. (People vs. Patriarca, Jr. G.R. No. 135457, September 29, 2000)
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