People vs. Pancho

In statutory rape of a woman below twelve years of age, force, intimidation, or physical evidence of injury is immaterial, and the absence of hymenal laceration does not negate the crime; the credible testimony of the victim alone may sustain a conviction. Conversely, attempted rape requires proof that the offender commenced acts of execution indicative of an intent to have carnal knowledge, and mere dragging or holding of the feet does not constitute such commencement.

Michelle dela Torre was born on April 2, 1984 to spouses Exequiela Lacanilao and Eduardo dela Torre. After Eduardo's death, Exequiela contracted a second marriage with Manolito Pancho. Michelle and her two brothers lived with the couple, first at Look First, Malolos, Bulacan, and later at Bayugo, Meycauayan, Bulacan. The governing statute for both charges is Article 335 of the Revised Penal Code, as amended by Republic Act No. 7659, which defines rape as having carnal knowledge of a woman by force or intimidation, when she is deprived of reason or unconscious, or when she is under twelve years of age.

Michelle dela Torre was born on April 2, 1984 to Exequiela Lacanilao and Eduardo dela Torre. After her father's death, her mother married Manolito Pancho, and Michelle lived with the couple together with her two brothers at Look First, Malolos, Bulacan.

On August 1, 1994, at around six o'clock in the morning, Michelle, then ten years old, returned home after spending the night at her aunt's house. While she was about to undress, appellant suddenly dragged her and forced her to lie down on the floor. Although frightened, she struggled by kicking and boxing him. Appellant forcibly removed her clothes and underwear, then took off his own. He placed himself on top of her, kissed her, touched her breasts, and inserted his penis into her vagina. She felt pain and bled. She tried to resist, but he held both her arms. After about four minutes, he dressed and threatened to kill her should she tell anyone.

Sometime in December 1995, at the family's new residence in Bayugo, Meycauayan, Bulacan, appellant arrived from work. When Michelle opened the door and saw him, she got scared and closed the door. As he approached, she hit him and attempted to jump out the window, but he dragged her by her feet. At that moment, her uncle Tito Onio arrived, and appellant stopped.

Michelle eventually reported both incidents to her mother, who casually ignored her. She then turned to her grandmother, Natividad Lacanilao, who brought her to the National Bureau of Investigation in February 1996 for a medico-genital examination. Dr. Ida P. Daniel, NBI Medico-Legal Officer, found Michelle's hymen intact, with no sign of extragenital physical injury, and concluded that the hymenal orifice was small enough (2.0 cms in diameter) as to preclude complete penetration by an average-sized adult Filipino male organ in full erection without producing genital injury. Thereafter, Michelle executed a sworn statement at the Malolos Police Station.

For his part, appellant denied the charges, contending that it was impossible for him to commit the crimes because his wife and her two sons were also inside the house during the incidents. He further argued that the charge of rape was belied by the medico-legal finding that Michelle's hymen remained intact with no sign of genital injury. The trial court found him guilty beyond reasonable doubt of rape and attempted rape, prompting the present appeal.

• Insufficiency of Evidence: Appellant contended that the trial court erred in finding him guilty beyond reasonable doubt of rape and attempted rape despite the insufficiency of the prosecution's evidence.
• Intact Hymen: Appellant argued that the charge of rape was totally belied by the NBI Medico-Legal Officer's finding that Michelle's hymen remained intact with no sign of extragenital or genital injuries, invoking the virgo intacta theory.
• Physical Impossibility: Appellant maintained that it was impossible for him to commit the crimes because during the incidents, his wife and her two sons were also inside the house.
• Lack of Overt Acts for Attempted Rape: Appellant contended that his conviction for attempted rape was not supported by evidence, as there was no showing that he commenced any act indicative of an intent to rape the victim.

• Statutory Rape — Sufficiency of Evidence: Whether the accused is guilty beyond reasonable doubt of statutory rape despite the medico-legal finding of an intact hymen and the defense of denial.
• Attempted Rape — Sufficiency of Evidence: Whether the accused is guilty of attempted rape based on the acts attributed to him in the December 1995 incident.

• Statutory Rape — Sufficiency of Evidence: Yes. The conviction for statutory rape was affirmed, the victim's credible and straightforward testimony being sufficient to establish carnal knowledge despite the intact hymen, the absence of laceration not being an element of rape.
• Attempted Rape — Sufficiency of Evidence: No. The attempted rape conviction was reversed and the accused acquitted, the prosecution having failed to prove that he commenced any act of execution indicative of an intent to rape the victim.

• Statutory Rape — Sufficiency of Evidence: Michelle was born on April 2, 1984, and was only ten years and three months old on August 1, 1994 when the incident occurred, placing the case squarely within the statutory rape provision of Article 335 of the Revised Penal Code. The gravamen of statutory rape is carnal knowledge of a woman below twelve years of age; force, intimidation, or physical evidence of injury is immaterial, and the only subject of inquiry is whether carnal knowledge took place. Michelle identified appellant in open court and testified in a straightforward manner, unflawed by significant inconsistency and unshaken by cross-examination, detailing how appellant dragged her, removed her clothes, inserted his penis into her vagina, and threatened to kill her. A rape victim's credible testimony alone may sustain a conviction. Appellant's reliance on the virgo intacta theory was rejected: the Court noted Dr. Daniel's testimony that some hymens remain intact even with penetration, and reiterated that the absence of fresh lacerations does not preclude a finding of rape, especially when the victim is of tender age. Laceration of the hymen is not an element of rape; rape is consummated by the slightest penile penetration of the labia majora. Medical examination is merely corroborative and not indispensable. Appellant's defense of denial was deemed inherently weak, crumbling in the face of the victim's positive identification. The qualifying circumstance of step-parent relationship was not alleged in the Information, so only simple rape could be convicted, warranting reclusion perpetua rather than the death penalty.

• Attempted Rape — Sufficiency of Evidence: Under Article 6 in relation to Article 335 of the Revised Penal Code, rape is attempted when the offender commences the commission of rape directly by overt acts but does not perform all the acts of execution by reason of some cause other than his own spontaneous desistance. In the December 1995 incident, the prosecution failed to prove that appellant had commenced the performance of any act indicative of an intent to rape. He did not force Michelle to lie down or remove her garment; he merely dragged her and held her feet when she tried to jump out the window. The arrival of Tito Onio interrupted the encounter, but at that juncture there was no overt act from which it could safely be concluded that appellant was attempting to rape her. Relying on People vs. Campuhan, where the Court held that the thin line separating attempted from consummated rape is the entrance of the male organ into the labial threshold, the Court found that mere holding of the feet could not constitute attempted rape. The conviction was thus reversed and the accused acquitted.

• Statutory Rape — The gravamen of statutory rape is carnal knowledge of a woman below twelve years of age. Force, intimidation, or physical evidence of injury is immaterial; the only subject of inquiry is whether carnal knowledge took place. The Court applied this doctrine because Michelle was ten years old at the time of the first incident, rendering proof of force or injury unnecessary.

• Virgo Intacta Theory Rejected — The absence of hymenal laceration does not preclude a finding of rape, especially when the victim is of tender age. Laceration of the hymen is not an element of rape; rape is consummated by the slightest penile penetration of the labia majora or pudendum. The Court rejected appellant's defense that the intact hymen disproved rape, noting that some hymens remain intact even with penetration and that medical evidence is merely corroborative.

• Credible Testimony of Rape Victim — An accused may be convicted of rape solely on the testimony of the victim if her testimony is credible, natural, and convincing. When a woman says she was raped, she says all that is necessary to show that rape was committed. The Court relied on this principle to affirm the rape conviction despite the lack of medical corroboration, finding Michelle's testimony straightforward and unshaken by cross-examination.

• Attempted Rape — Overt Acts Required — Rape is attempted when the offender commences the commission of rape directly by overt acts but does not perform all acts of execution by reason of some cause other than his own spontaneous desistance. The Court acquitted the appellant of attempted rape because mere dragging and holding of the feet, without any act directed toward carnal knowledge, did not constitute commencement of the acts of execution.

• "In statutory rape, force, intimidation or physical evidence of injury is immaterial. Where the girl is below 12 years of age, violence or intimidation is not required, and the only subject of inquiry is whether carnal knowledge took place." — This passage defines the controlling doctrine for statutory rape, establishing that proof of carnal knowledge alone suffices when the victim is under twelve.

• "Rape is consummated by the slightest penile penetration of the labia majora or pudendum of the female organ." — This is the canonical formulation of the penetration rule, directly refuting the virgo intacta defense and confirming that hymenal rupture is not necessary for consummation.

• "It would be stretching to the extreme our credulity if we were to conclude that mere holding of the feet is attempted rape." — This passage encapsulates the ratio decidendi for acquitting the appellant of attempted rape, emphasizing that overt acts indicative of an intent to commit rape must be shown.

• People vs. Campuhan, G.R. No. 129433, March 30, 2000, 329 SCRA 270 — Followed. The Court applied Campuhan's principle that the thin line separating attempted from consummated rape is the entrance of the male organ into the labial threshold, using it to demonstrate that mere holding of feet falls short of attempted rape.
• People vs. Pruna, G.R. No. 138471, October 10, 2002 — Followed. Cited for the proposition that the absence of fresh lacerations does not preclude a finding of rape and that rape is consummated by the slightest penile penetration.
• People vs. Dalisay, G.R. No. 133926, August 6, 2003 — Followed. Cited for the definition of the gravamen of statutory rape as carnal knowledge of a woman below twelve years old.
• People vs. Bartolome, G.R. No. 133987, January 28, 2000, 323 SCRA 836 — Followed. Cited for the rule that qualified rape requires both the age of the victim and the relationship with the appellant to be alleged in the Information and proved; their absence limits conviction to simple rape.

• Article 335, Revised Penal Code, as amended by Republic Act No. 7659 — Defines when and how rape is committed: by force or intimidation, when the woman is deprived of reason or unconscious, or when the woman is under twelve years of age. Provides for reclusion perpetua as the penalty for simple rape and the death penalty when the victim is under eighteen and the offender is a parent, step-parent, guardian, or relative within the third civil degree. Applied to convict the appellant of simple statutory rape, the qualifying circumstance of step-parent relationship not having been alleged in the Information.
• Article 6, Revised Penal Code — Defines attempted felony as occurring when the offender commences the commission of a felony directly by overt acts but does not perform all the acts of execution by reason of some cause other than his own spontaneous desistance. Applied in relation to Article 335 to test whether the December 1995 incident constituted attempted rape; the Court found no overt acts of execution had commenced.

Vitug (Chairman), Corona, and Carpio-Morales, JJ., concurred.