05/03/2025
The (SC) has held that a victim's youth and immaturity serve as strong indicators of the truthfulness and sincerity of their testimony regarding unlawful acts committed against them.
In a Decision written by Associate Justice Henri Jean Paul B. Inting, the SC’s Third Division affirmed the conviction of Resty Laconsay (Laconsay) for Lascivious Conduct under Section 5(b) of Republic Act (RA) No. 7610 or the Special Protection of Children Against Abuse, Exploitation and Discrimination Act after he molested a 14-year-old girl.
The victim, AAA, recounted that she was sleeping at home with her siblings when she woke up to find a person standing at her feet, holding a cellphone. The person pulled down her blanket, touched her foot, and caressed her leg up to her groin. AAA identified her assailant as Laconsay, their neighbor.
Laconsay denied the allegations, arguing that AAA’s testimony was inconsistent because she initially told her father that it was not Laconsay who molested her.
Holding that Laconsay committed Lascivious Conduct, the SC found AAA’s testimony credible in describing the lascivious acts committed against her and positively identifying Laconsay as her assailant. It emphasized that her youth and immaturity are badges of truth and sincerity, “because of her relative vulnerability and the shame and embarrassment that would arise if the matter about which she testified were not true.”
Read the full text of the Press Release at https://sc.judiciary.gov.ph/sc-youth-and-immaturity-strengthen-victims-credibility-in-molestation-case/.
Read the full text of the Decision at https://sc.judiciary.gov.ph/259861-resty-laconsay-vs-people-of-the-philippines/.
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