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ROSALDES v.

PEOPLE
October 8, 2014 | Bersamin, J. | Crimes Against Persons - Special Protection of Children Against Abuse, Exploitation and
Discrimination Act

PETITIONER: Felina Rosaldes


RESPONDENT: People of the Philippines
SUMMARY: Petitioner Rosaldes was a public school teacher who beat up Michael Ryan, a Grade 1 pupil. She was
charged with child abuse. RTC, CA, and SC all concurred that Rosaldes was guilty of committing child abuse against
Michael.
DOCTRINE: Section 3 of RA No. 7610 defines child abuse thusly:

(b) "Child abuse" refers to the maltreatment, whether habitual or not, of the child which includes any of the
following: (1) Psychological and physical abuse, neglect, cruelty, sexual abuse and emotional maltreatment;

(2) Any act by deeds or words which debases, degrades or demeans the intrinsic worth and dignity of a child
as a human being;

(3) Unreasonable deprivation of his basic needs for survival, such as food and shelter; or

(4) Failure to immediately give medical treatment to an injured child resulting in serious impairment of his
growth and development or in his permanent incapacity or death.

FACTS: and told his mother about the incident.

1. On February 13, 1996, 7-year-old Michael Ryan 8. His mother and his Aunt Evangeline Gonzales
Gonzales, then a Grade 1 pupil at Pughanan reported the incident to their Barangay Captain,
Elementary School located in the Municipality of Gonzalo Larroza who advised them to have Michael
Lambunao, Iloilo, was hurriedly entering his Ryan examined by a doctor.
classroom when he accidentally bumped the knee of
his teacher, petitioner Felina Rosaldes, who was 9. Michael Ryan’s aunt and Barangay Councilman
then asleep on a bamboo sofa. Ernesto Ligante brought him to the Dr. Ricardo Y.
Ladrido Hospital where he was examined by Dr.
2. Roused from sleep, Rosaldes asked Michael Ryan Teresita Castigador.
to apologize to her. When Michael did not obey but
instead proceeded to his seat, Rosaldes went to 10. They, likewise, reported the incident to the
Michael and pinched him on his thigh. Then, she Police Station.
held him up by his armpits and pushed him to the 11. Rosaldes was criminally charged with child
floor. As he fell, Michael Ryan’s body hit a desk. abuse in the RTC.
3. As a result, he lost consciousness. Rosaldes 12. On June 26, 2003, the RTC rendered judgment
proceeded to pick Michael Ryan up by his ears and convicting the petitioner of child abuse,5 disposing
repeatedly slammed him down on the floor. Michael as follows:
Ryan cried WHEREFORE, finding the accused guilty beyond
5. After the incident, Rosaldes proceeded to teach reasonable doubt of Violation of Section 10 (a),
her class. During lunch break, Michael Ryan, Article VI of R.A. 7610, the Court sentences her to
accompanied by two of his classmates, Louella an indeterminate prison term ranging from four (4)
Loredo and Jonalyn Gonzales, went home crying years, two (2) months and one (1) day of prision
correccional, as minimum, to six (6) years and one
(1) day of prision mayor, as maximum, and to pay infliction of the physical injuries on him was
the costs. No pronouncement as to civil liability, the unnecessary, violent and excessive. The boy even
same not having been proved. SO ORDERED. fainted from the violence suffered at her hands.

13. CA affirmed the conviction of the petitioner 2. She could not justifiably claim that she acted only
through its assailed decision promulgated on May for the sake of disciplining him. Her physical
11, 2005,7 with a modification of the penalty, viz: maltreatment of him was precisely prohibited by no
WHEREFORE, premises considered, judgment is less than the Family Code, which has expressly
hereby rendered by us DISMISSING the appeal banned the infliction of corporal punishmentby a
filed in this case and AFFIRMING the decision school administrator, teacher or individual engaged
rendered on June 26, 2003 by the court a quo in in child care exercising special parental authority
Criminal Case No. 46893 with the (i.e., in loco parentis), viz:
MODIFICATION that the accusedappellant is Article 233. The person exercising substitute
sentenced to suffer the indeterminate penalty of four parental authority shall have the same authority
(4) years, two (2) months and one (1) day of prision over the person of the child as the parents.
correccional, as the minimum of it, to ten (10) years
and one (1) day of prision mayor, as the maximum 2. In no case shall the school administrator, teacher
thereof. IT IS SO ORDERED. or individual engaged in childcare exercising
special parental authority inflict corporal
14. Hence, this case. punishment upon the child.

3. Proof of the severe results of Rosaldes' physical


HELD: WHEREFORE, the Court AFFIRMS the maltreatment of Michael Ryan was provided by Dr.
decision promulgated on May 11, 2005, subject to Teresita Castigador, the Medico-Legal Officer of
the MODIFICATIONS that: (a) the petitioner shall the Dr. Ricardo Y. Ladrido Memorial Hospital in
suffer the indeterminate penalty of four (4) years, Iloilo who examined the victim at about 1:00
nine (9) months and eleven (11) days of prision o’clock in the afternoon of February 13, 1996,
correccional, as minimum, to seven (7) years, four barely three hours from the timethe boy had
(4) months and one (1) day of pr is ion mayor, as sustained his injuries.
the maximum; (b) the petitioner shall pay to
Michael Ryan Gonzales ₱20,000.00 as moral 4. Section 3 of RA No. 7610 defines child abuse
damages, ₱20,000.00 as exemplary damages, and thusly: (b) "Child abuse" refers to the maltreatment,
₱20,000.00 as temperate damages, plus interest at whether habitual or not, of the child which includes
the rate of 6% per annum on each item of the civil any of the following:
liability reckoned from the finality of this decision (1) Psychological and physical abuse, neglect,
until full payment; and (c) the petitioner shall pay cruelty, sexual abuse and emotional maltreatment;
the costs of suit. (2) Any act by deeds or words which debases,
degrades or demeans the intrinsic worth and dignity
of a child as a human being;
(3) Unreasonable deprivation of his basic needs for
ISSUE: WON Rosaldes committed child abuse? survival, such as food and shelter; or
YES. (4) Failure to immediately give medical treatment to
an injured child resulting in serious impairment of
RATIO: his growth and development or in his permanent
1. Although the Rosaldes, as a school teacher, could incapacity or death.
duly discipline Michael Ryan as her pupil, her 5. In this case: The maltreatment may consist of an
act by deeds or by wordsthat debases, degrades or
demeans the intrinsic worth and dignity of a child as
a human being. The act need not be habitual.
6. The CA concluded that Rosaldes "went overboard
in disciplining Michael Ryan, a helpless and weak
7-year old boy, when she pinched hard Michael
Ryan on the left thigh and when she held him in the
armpits and threw him on the floor[; and as] the boy
fell down, his body hit the desk causing him to lose
consciousness [but instead] of feeling a sense of
remorse, Rosaldes further held the boy up by his
ears and pushed him down on the floor."

7. On her part, the trial judge said that the physical


pain experienced by the victim had been aggravated
by an emotional trauma that caused him to stop
going to school altogether out of fear of the
petitioner, compelling his parents to transfer him to
another school where he had to adjust again.

8. Such established circumstances proved beyond


reasonable doubt thatthe petitioner was guilty of
child abuse by deeds that degraded and demeaned
the intrinsic worth and dignity of Michael Ryan as a
human being.

9. It was also shown that Michael Ryan’s physical


maltreatment by the petitioner was neither her first
or only maltreatment of a child.

10. Prosecution witness Louella Loredo revealed on


cross examination that she had also experienced the
petitioner’s cruelty.

11. Rosaldes was also convicted by the RTC in


Iloilo City (Branch 39) in Criminal Case No.
348921 for maltreatment of another childnamed
Dariel Legayada.

12. Such previous incidents manifested that the


petitioner had "a propensity for violence," as the
trial judge stated in her decision of June 26, 2003.

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