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PEOPLE vs Jose Moreno

PEOPLE OF THE PHILIPPINES, plaintiff-appellee, vs. JOSE MORENO y CASTOR, accused-appellant.

G.R. No. 126921 | 1998-08-28

D E C I S I O N

PANGANIBAN, J.:

Evidence of overwhelming physical force is not necessary to sustain a conviction for the rape of an imbecile. When the victim is a retardate with the mental age of a six-year-old child, the force required to overcome her is of a lesser degree than that used against a normal adult.

The Case

Jose Moreno y Castor seeks the reversal of the June 17, 1996 Judgment[1] of the Regional Trial Court of Pasig City, Branch 165, in Criminal Case No. 101919, convicting him of rape and sentencing him to reclusion perpetua.

In a Complaint dated October 4, 1993, Jocelyn Bansagales and her mother, Dolores Bansagales,...