FACTS
On April 25, 1996, at around 4:00 in the afternoon, Ma. Corazon P. Pamintuan went downstairs in their house to prepare Milo drinks for her two children. Her four-year-old daughter, Crysthel Pamintuan, was upstairs with her younger sister. Corazon then heard Crysthel crying, “Ayoko, ayoko!” She immediately rushed upstairs and saw Primo Campuhan, who was a helper of Conrado Plata, Jr., inside the children's room. Campuhan was kneeling before Crysthel, whose pajamas and panty had already been removed, while his short pants were down to his knees. Corazon testified that Campuhan was forcing his penis toward Crysthel's vagina.
Corazon confronted Campuhan and boxed him several times. He evaded her blows, pulled up his pants, and pushed her aside as he tried to leave. Corazon ran outside and shouted for help. Her brother, cousin, and uncle, together with other persons living within the compound, chased and apprehended Campuhan. He was eventually brought to the barangay officials. A physical examination of Crysthel showed that her hymen was intact and its orifice was only 0.5 centimeter in diameter. No evident external physical injuries were found on her.
Campuhan denied the accusation. He claimed that Crysthel was merely playing and wanted to ride on his back. According to him, she suddenly pulled him down, causing both of them to fall. Corazon allegedly saw them in that position, became hysterical, slapped him, and accused him of raping her daughter. Campuhan further claimed that Corazon's relatives chased and assaulted him after he denied the accusation.
The Regional Trial Court found Campuhan guilty of statutory rape and sentenced him to death, because Crysthel was only four years old. The RTC also ordered him to pay ₱50,000 moral damages and ₱25,000 exemplary damages. The case was automatically reviewed by the Supreme Court under Article 335 of the Revised Penal Code, as amended by R.A. No. 7659.
ISSUE
The first issue was whether Campuhan was guilty of consummated statutory rape. The Court had to determine whether the prosecution proved beyond reasonable doubt that Campuhan's penis had penetrated Crysthel's female organ, even to the slightest degree, as required for consummated rape.
The second issue was whether the acts committed by Campuhan constituted attempted rape instead of consummated rape. The Court examined whether the evidence established the necessary acts of execution for consummated rape or whether Campuhan merely commenced the commission of rape through overt acts without completing all the acts necessary to produce the crime.
The third issue was whether the testimony of Corazon and the physical findings sufficiently established penetration. The Court considered the circumstances under which Corazon claimed to have seen the sexual contact, Crysthel's own testimony that there was no penetration, and the medico-legal examination showing no physical indication of sexual contact or penetration.
HELD
The Supreme Court MODIFIED the RTC decision. Campuhan was not guilty of consummated statutory rape but was found guilty of ATTEMPTED RAPE. The Court sentenced him to an indeterminate prison term of eight (8) years, four (4) months and ten (10) days of prision mayor medium, as minimum, to fourteen (14) years, ten (10) months and twenty (20) days of reclusion temporal medium, as maximum.
The Court explained that under Article 335 of the Revised Penal Code, as then applicable, statutory rape was committed when a man had carnal knowledge of a woman under twelve years of age. Because Crysthel was only four years old, the applicable penalty under R.A. No. 7659, Section 11 was death when the offense was consummated. However, the Court emphasized that penetration, however slight, must still be established for rape to be consummated. Mere touching of the external surface of the female genitalia is not sufficient. The touching must be connected with entry into the labia or lips of the female organ.
The Court found that the prosecution failed to prove penetration. Corazon testified that she saw Campuhan forcing his penis toward Crysthel's vagina, but the Court found that her position and Campuhan's kneeling position made it difficult for her to have an unobstructed view of the actual point of contact. Campuhan's body, arms, and hand holding his penis obstructed the supposed contact area. The prosecution therefore failed to sufficiently establish that his penis entered the labia or female organ.
Crysthel herself testified that Campuhan's penis touched her organ but categorically answered “No” when asked whether it penetrated her organ. The Court refused to give this four-year-old child's answer an adult interpretation that touching necessarily meant penetration. The Court also noted that she did not experience intense pain and that the medico-legal examination found no external injuries and provided no medical basis for concluding that sexual contact had occurred.
The Court therefore held that all the elements of attempted rape, and only attempted rape, were present. Under Article 6 of the Revised Penal Code, rape is attempted when the offender commences the commission of the felony directly by overt acts but does not perform all the acts of execution necessary to produce the crime because of a cause or accident other than his own spontaneous desistance. Since penetration was not established, the crime remained at the attempted stage. The penalty for attempted rape was two degrees lower than the penalty prescribed for the consummated offense. Applying the Indeterminate Sentence Law, the Court imposed the penalty stated above.
The Court thus modified the judgment finding Campuhan guilty of statutory rape and sentencing him to death, and instead found him guilty of attempted rape. Costs were imposed de oficio
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