PP v Rondina g.r. no. Prosecution’s Theory o
Sometime Sometime around around noon of August 30, 1998, AAA, allegedl allegedly y only 14 years years old, lay awake beside a wall of their house while her 1-year-old sister was sleeping next next to her her . S he he heard heard a noise noise coming coming from from the kitche kitchen n and and sudden suddenly ly Rondina was on top of her . Poking a knife at her chest, chest , he warned her not to tell her parents, stu!ed her mouth with a face towel , and ui!kly remo"ed her shorts and underwear. #e then inserted his penis into her "agina and made a push and pull mo"ement, mo"ement, keeping keeping at this for a $long time.$ AAA felt pain in her organ, and "ust before he #nished she felt him discharge something inside her . #e pulled out his penis, and she noti!ed %lood oo&ing from her "agina. #e sat %eside her while she remained supine and !rying. ' At that e(a!t moment, ))) entered the house and o"erheard *ondina and AAA talking in a low "oi!e. +n the kit!hen, she was surprised to see AAA and *ondina on the oor still naked from the waist down. She angrily demanded to know what they were doing, %ut AAA said nothing and -ust !ried, still in terror of *ondina, as the latter ui!kly put on his !lothes and ran out through the kit!hen. At rst, ))) told no one what she saw that day, ha"ing %een kept %usy in the farm. )ut the ne(t day, she told ///, AAAs mother, and two days later, after AAA had left for a!lo%an where she worked as a laundrywoman, 2 /// and ))) sought the help of /aptain ultian, who ad"ised them to get a medi!al report report on AAA. A AA. 8
$efense’s Theory • •
o"ers %ccused met %%% on Augu August st 10, 10, 1998 1998 at a bene#t dance held during their town #esta. They danced three times to slow music and in the course of the evening she agreed to be his sweetheart. #e "isited her se"eral times at home, and ea!h time her parents were around. 5n August 69, 1998, a Saturday at around &'(( p.m., p.m ., *ondina again saw AAA, and it was then that he broached an )intimate) proposal to her. her . *he agreed but told him to come back at noon the next day sin!e her parents would %e away in the farm. Rondina returned as agreed, agreed, and AAA herself opened the door. AAA led him to the kit!hen, and there the lo"ers lost no time kissing and !aressing ea!h other. other. AAA took o7 her %ra and shorts, and *ondina also took o7 his shorts. *ondina insisted that he and AAA still had their underwear on when ))) arri"ed -ust when they were a%out to !ommen!e the se(ual a!t. +e denied that he used a towel and a knife to facilitate the rape. ))) refused to %e pa!ied and *ondina had to lea"e. #e put on his shorts and e(ited through the kit!hen. )elie"ing that he !ommitted no !rime, *ondina was surprised when when the poli!e poli!e !ame !ame to his rented rented house house and and arre arreste sted d him on Septem Septem%er %er 1', 16 13 1998. 1998. #e also !laimed that /aptain ultian tried to e(tort money from him.
*uling %,/TT%0 o
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)y its its "ery "ery natu naturre, a !har !harge ge of rape rape must must %e resol esol"e "ed d %y gi"i gi"ing ng prim primor ordi dial al !onsideration to the !redi%ility of the "i!tims testimony, sin!e !on"i!tion may %e solely %ased thereon, pro"ided it is !redi%le, natural, !on"in!ing, and !onsistent with human nature and the normal !ourse of things. 19 or when a woman says she was raped, she says in e7e!t all that is ne!essary to show that rape was !ommitted. So if her testimony meets the test of !redi%ility, !on"i!tion may issue on the %asis thereof. 60
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/t has been held that when the victim’s testimony is corroborated by the physician’s #nding of penetration there is sucient foundation to conclude the existence of the essential re2uisite of carnal knowledge3 that laceration whether healed or fresh is the best physical evidence of forcible de4oration. o +n this !ase the medi!al report was not testied to, and therefore it is at %est a hearsay e"iden!e. :"en granting it to %e admissi%le, the report !learly shows that AAA su7ered no la!erations in her hymen, whether re!ent or healed and whether deep or super!ial, nor other similar in-uries !onsistent with "iolent se(ual assault. /t is true that the absence of lacerated wounds in %%%’s vagina does not negate sexual intercourse. 62 0aceration of the hymen considered the most telling and irrefutable physical evidence of sexual assault , is not always essential to establish the consummation of the crime of rape. +n the !onte(t used in the *P/, $!arnal knowledge,$ unlike its ordinary !onnotation of se(ual inter!ourse, does not ne!essarily reuire that the "agina %e penetrated or that the hymen %e ruptured.68 )ut when the "i!tim says that the a!!used inserted his penis into her "agina and pushed and pulled inside her $for a long time,$ and she felt pain and %lood oo&ed from her organ, the stark a%sen!e of any "aginal tear or la!eration will ha"e to %e medi!ally e(plained, or else, the /ourt is left with no inferen!e other than that the !harge of rape may ha"e %een a mere fa%ri!ation. he s!enario !reated %y the prose!ution is that of a %arrio maiden whose purity was %eing for!i%ly assailed in a sudden atta!k, and the atta!ker is a stranger, one who naturally has no demands upon the "i!tims a7e!tions nor e(er!ises moral as!endan!y o"er her. It thus beggars belief that without putting up a resistance, AAA just lay still on her back and mutely suered the shame and pain of her repeated violation by Rondina. She did not even raise a shout or a whimper, yet it was noonday, the windows and doors of her house were open, there were people within a few arms length in the "i!inity, and her grandmother ))) li"ed -ust a house away. After her atta!ker had ed, still she raised no out!ry. +n People v. $i5on 69 the accused had a gun and he threatened to kill the victim, but she vigorously resisted and tried to stop the seual assault! she kicked and pushed the accused away to prevent him from consummating his lustful desire! she screamed for help, although no one came. In this appeal, the medico legal report found no eternal injuries whatsoever sustained by AAA, indicating that she did not resist. 6et from her testimony her hands were unrestrained and although Rondina poked a knife at her in the beginning he later laid it beside her. nbelievably too despite the threat of in"ury or death and with her mouth stu7ed with a towel as her atta!ker for!i%ly entered her repeatedly, %%% could still take notice that Rondina e"aculated inside her . ;ith su!h mental sangfroid, one wonders how AAA !ould ha"e failed to de"ise any resistan!e. Signi!antly, too, the ,ourt #nds it curious that %%% completely overlooked making any further mention of the knife and towel used by Rondina . She was a%solutely sure he used a knife to threaten her, and then %oth she and ))) testied that he stu7ed AAAs mouth with a fa!e towel to gag her. 6et they told nothing of the whereabouts of these ob"ects and neither %%% nor 777 saw Rondina leave the house with the knife and towel. +f then *ondina left them %ehind in the house where are these vital evidence8 owards the end of her testimony, ))) made an un%idden mention of the towel stu7ed into AAAs mouth when she saw her,31 %ut this was an o%"ious !on!o!tion, sin!e she did say that in the sala, she rst o"erheard them talking softly in the kit!hen. Also, upon seeing them half naked in the kit!hen, she immediately demanded from AAA what they had done. ;hy would she ask her if she already saw AAA gagged with a towel< +n!identally, the */ noted that
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AAAs minority has not %een esta%lished %y any do!umentary or other e"iden!e, nor e"en alleged in the information. 36 ime and again, the ,ourt has emphasi5ed that a woman’s conduct immediately after the alleged assault is of critical value in gauging the truth of her accusations.
