Recantation after final judgment

Recantation after final judgment "I am a person deprived of liberty (PDL) and currently serving my sentence at the national penitentiary. My case was decided in 2015 and I did not appeal the decision of the court. The complainant/witness in my case executed an affidavit recanting all her testimonies against me. Would that affidavit help me in my case? Please guide me.Arnessy Dear Arnessy,The affidavit of the complainant/witness in your case recanting her previous testimony against you will no longer affect the decision of the court, which attained its finality in 2015. This is in consonance with the principle of immutability of judgment. Under the doctrine of finality of judgment or immutability of judgment, a decision that has acquired finality becomes immutable and unalterable, and may no longer be modified in any respect, even if the modification is meant to correct erroneous conclusions of fact and law, and whether it be made by the court that rendered it or by the Highest Court of the land. Any act which violates this principle must immediately be struck down (Gadrinab vs Salamanca, et al., GR 194560, June 11, 2014, Ponente: Associate Justice Mario Victor Leonen).To guide you further, please take note of the decision of the case titled People of the Philippines vs Deauna (GR 143200-01, Aug. 1, 2002), where the Supreme Court, speaking through Chief Justice Artemio Panganiban, explained the rationale behind the court’s disfavor on the recantation of witness on her testimony previously given in open court: “As regards the recantation of the victim, we emphasize that mere retraction by a prosecution witness does not necessarily vitiate her original testimony. If such testimony was sufficiently clear, consistent and credible to establish the crime beyond reasonable doubt, a conviction may be based on it, notwithstanding its subsequent retraction. It has long been held that retractions are generally unreliable and are looked upon with considerable disfavor by the courts. xxx“The Separate Opinion of Justice Reynato S. Puno in Alonte v[s] Savellano explains the rationale for rejecting recantations in these words: “‘Mere retraction by a witness or by complainant of his or her testimony does not necessarily vitiate the original testimony or statement, if credible. The general rule is that courts look with disfavor upon retractions of testimonies previously given in court. xxx. The reason is because affidavits of retraction can easily be secured from poor and ignorant witnesses, usually through intimidation or for monetary consideration. Moreover, there is always the probability that they will later be repudiated and there would never be an end to criminal litigation. It would also be a dangerous rule for courts to reject testimonies solemnly taken before courts of justice simply because the witnesses who had given them later on changed their minds for one reason or another. This would make solemn trials a mockery and place the investigation of the truth at the mercy of unscrupulous witnesses.’” (Italics supplied)Applying the above-quoted decision in your situation, if the witness or complainant’s testimony was clear, consistent and credible to establish the crime beyond reasonable doubt, the mere recantation or retraction of the complainant/witness afterwards does not vitiate her original testimony.We hope that we were able to answer your queries. This advice is based solely on the facts you have narrated and our appreciation of the same. Our opinion may vary when other facts are changed or elaborated.Editor’s note: Dear PAO is a daily column of the Public Attorney’s Office. Questions for Chief Acosta may be sent to dearpao@manilatimes.net" - https://www.affordablecebu.com/