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PEOPLE vs. Benjamin Cayabyab

PEOPLE OF THE PHILIPPINES, plaintiff-appellee vs. BENJAMIN CAYABYAB y BAGAYAN alias BENJIE CAYABYAB, accused-appellant.

G.R. No. 123073 | 1997-06-19

D E C I S I O N

PANGANIBAN, J:

In order that self-defense may totally exculpate an accused from criminal liability, he must prove with clear and convincing evidence all the elements of his chosen defense. As he has admitted to the killing, the accused must thus rely on the strength of his own evidence and not on the weakness of the prosecution's. However, we agree with the Solicitor General's recommendation that the accused should be held guilty only of homicide, not murder, because the prosecution failed to prove treachery as clearly and as cogently as the killing itself. Hence, the appellant is saved from the penalty of death.

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