Place dedicated to religious worship, A14(5) Revised Penal Code

1. Concept

Place dedicated to religious worship, as an aggravating circumstance under the Revised Penal Code – refers to the circumstance when the offender commits the crime in a place dedicated to religious worship.

a. Legal basis

Article 14. Aggravating circumstances. – The following are aggravating circumstances:

5. That the crime be committed in… a place dedicated to religious worship.

(Revised Penal Code)

2. Place of religious worship

For the aggravating circumstance of place dedicated to religious worship, the offender commits the crime in a place dedicated to religious worship.

a. Specifically sought

In the 1946 case of People v. Jaurigue, the Accused killed the Victim insider a church; however, the aggravating circumstance of place dedicated to religious worship was not appreciated or applied as the decision suggests that such circumstance must have been intended or specifically sought for by the offender. After all, as with any other aggravating circumstance, it is the perversity that it is the reason for increasing the penalty in case of the presence of an aggravating circumstance.

People v. Jaurigue, En Banc, C.A. No. 384, February 21, 1946, Per De Joya, J.:

• That both the defendant and appellant Avelina Jaurigue and the deceased Amado Capina lived in the barrio of Sta. Isabel, City of San Pablo, Province of Laguna; that for sometime prior to the stabbing of the deceased by defendant and appellant, in the evening of September 20, 1942, the former had been courting the latter in vain, and that on one occasion, about one month before that fatal night, Amado Capina snatched a handkerchief belonging to her, bearing her nickname “Aveling,” while it was being washed by her cousin, Josefa Tapay.

• On September 13, 1942, while Avelina was feeding a dog under her house, Amado approached her and spoke to her of his love, which she flatly refused, and he thereupon suddenly embraced and kissed her and touched her breasts, on account of which Avelina, resolute and quick-tempered girl, slapped Amado, gave him fist blows and kicked him. She kept the matter to herself, until the following morning when she informed her mother about it. Since then, she armed herself with a long fan knife, whenever she went out, evidently for self-protection.

• On September 15, 1942, about midnight, Amado climbed up the house of defendant and appellant, and surreptitiously entered the room where she was sleeping. He felt her forehead, evidently with the intention of abusing her. She immediately screamed for help, which awakened her parents and brought them to her side. Amado came out from where he had hidden under a bed in Avelina’s room and kissed the hand of Nicolas Jaurigue, her father, asking for forgiveness; and when Avelina’s mother made an attempt to beat Amado, her husband prevented her from doing so, stating that Amado probably did not realize what he was doing. Nicolas Jaurigue sent for the barrio lieutenant, Casimiro Lozada, and for Amado’s parents, the following morning. Amado’s parents came to the house of Nicolas Jaurigue and apologized for the misconduct of their son; and as Nicolas Jaurigue was then angry, he told them to end the conversation, as he might not be able to control himself.

• In the morning of September 20, 1942, Avelina received information that Amado had been falsely boasting in the neighborhood of having taken liberties with her person and that she had even asked him to elope with her and that if he should not marry her, she would take poison; and that Avelina again received information of Amado’s bragging at about 5 o’clock in the afternoon of that same day.

• At about 8 o’clock in the evening of the same day, September 20, 1942, Nicolas Jaurigue went to the chapel of the Seventh Day Adventists of which he was the treasurer, in their barrio, just across the provincial road from his house, to attend religious services, and sat on the front bench facing the altar with the other officials of the organization and the barrio lieutenant, Casimiro Lozada. Inside the chapel it was quite bright as there were electric lights.

• Defendant and appellant Avelina Jaurigue entered the chapel shortly after the arrival of her father, also for the purpose of attending religious services, and sat on the bench next to the last one nearest the door. Amado Capina was seated on the other side of the chapel. Upon observing the presence of Avelina Jaurigue, Amado Capina went to the bench on which Avelina was sitting and sat by her right side, and, without saying a word, Amado, with the greatest of impudence, placed his hand on the upper part of her right thigh. On observing this highly improper and offensive conduct of Amado Capina, Avelina Jaurigue, conscious of her personal dignity and honor, pulled out with her right hand the fan knife marked Exhibit B, which she had in a pocket of her dress, with the intention of punishing Amado’s offending hand. Amado seized Avelina’s right hand, but she quickly grabbed the knife with her left hand and stabbed Amado once at the base of the left side of the neck, inflicting upon him a wound about 4 1/2 inches deep, which was necessarily mortal. Nicolas Jaurigue, who was seated on one of the front benches, saw Amado bleeding and staggering towards the altar, and upon seeing his daughter still holding the bloody knife, he approached her and asked: “Why did you do that,” and answering him Avelina said: “Father, I could not endure anymore.” Amado Capina died from the wound a few minutes later. Barrio lieutenant Casimiro Lozada, who was also in the same chapel, approached Avelina and asked her why she did that, and Avelina surrendered herself, saying: “Kayo na po ang bahala sa aquin,” meaning: “I hope you will take care of me,” or more correctly, “I place myself at your disposal.” Fearing that Amado’s relatives might retaliate, barrio lieutenant Lozada advised Nicolas Jaurigue and herein defendant and appellant to go home immediately, to close their doors and windows and not to admit anybody into the house, unless accompanied by him. That father and daughter went home and locked themselves up, following instructions of the barrio lieutenant, and waited for the arrival of the municipal authorities; and when three policemen arrived in their house, at about 10 o’clock that night, and questioned them about the incident, defendant and appellant immediately surrendered the knife marked as Exhibit B, and informed said policemen briefly of what had actually happened in the chapel and of the previous acts and conduct of the deceased, as already stated above, and went with said policemen to the police headquarters, where her written statements were taken, and which were presented as a part of the evidence for the prosecution.

• According to the facts established by the evidence and found by the learned trial court in this case, when the deceased sat by the side of defendant and appellant on the same bench, near the door of the barrio chapel and placed his hand on the upper portion of her right thigh, without her consent, the said chapel was lighted with electric lights, and there were already several people, about ten of them, inside the chapel, including her own father and the barrio lieutenant and other dignitaries of the organization; and under the circumstances, there was and there could be no possibility of her being raped. And when she gave Amado Capina a thrust at the base of the left side of his neck, inflicting upon him a mortal wound 4 1/2 inches deep, causing his death a few moments later, the means employed by her in the defense of her honor was evidently excessive; and under the facts and circumstances of the case, she cannot be legally declared completely exempt from criminal liability.

• Defendant and appellant further claims that she had not intended to kill the deceased but merely wanted to punish his offending hand with her knife, as shown by the fact that she inflicted upon him only one single wound. And this is another mitigating circumstance which should be considered in her favor (United States vs. Brobst, 14 Phil., 310; United States vs. Diaz, 15 Phil., 123).

• The claim of the prosecution, sustained by the learned trial court, that the offense was committed by the defendant and appellant, with the aggravating circumstance that the killing was done in a place dedicated to religious worship, cannot be legally sustained; as there is no evidence to show that the defendant and appellant had murder in her heart when she entered the chapel that fatal night. Avelina is not a criminal by nature. She happened to kill under the greatest provocation. She is a God-fearing young woman, typical of our country girls, who still possess the consolation of religious hope in a world where so many others have hopelessly lost the faith of their elders and now drifting away they know not where.

3. Distinguished

The following should be distinguished.

a. Place of religious worship, A14(5) RPC vs Offending the religious feeling, A248 RPC

Factors	Place of religious worship, A14(5) RPC	Murder, A133 RPC
Effect	Generic aggravating circumstance (i.e. it applies to all crimes) – unless it is an attendant circumstance as in offending the religious feeling	Attendant circumstance to the crime of murder; hence, place dedicated to religious worship is absorbed in and qualifies the crime of murder
Overt Acts	Offender commits a crime with treachery.	Offender commits the crime of offending the religious feeling at a place dedicated to religious worship.

Under Article 133 of the RPC, the following is an attendant circumstance to offending the religious feeling: if the offender, in a place devoted to religious worship or during the celebration of any religious ceremony, shall perform acts notoriously offensive to the feelings of the faithful.

See related:

• Offending the religious feeling, A133 Revised Penal Code

References

• Title I – Felonies and Circumstances which Affect Criminal Liability, Book I, Act No. 3815, Revised Penal Code