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PEOPLE vs Paulino Sevilleno

PEOPLE OF THE PHILIPPINES, plaintiff-appellee, vs. PAULINO SEVILLENO Y VILLANUEVA alias TAMAYO, accused-appellant.

G.R. No. 129058 | 1999-03-29

D E C I S I O N


BELLOSILLO, J.:

By pleading guilty to the rape and killing of a 9-year old girl a death sentence would seem inevitable. But a mere plea of guilt is not sufficient for conviction as the court must first assure itself that the accused fully understood the consequences of his plea. In the instant case, the trial court failed to conduct a searching inquiry into the voluntariness of his admission of guilt and that he fully comprehended the implications thereof. As the court a quo inadequately discharged its duty of conducting a searching inquiry, the plea of guilt to a capital offense therefore inevitably became null and...