People v. Rivera
People v. Rivera
Opinion of the Court
delivered the opinion of the court.
The information in this case reads as follows:
“The fiscal charges Miguel Bivera with the crime of aggravated assault and battery, a misdemeanor, committed in the following manner: On or about August 18, 1914, in the city of San Juan, which forms part of the judicial district of the same name, the said Miguel Bivera unlawfully and wilfully assaulted and beat Eduardo Ferrer with brass knuckles with the intent to cause him serious bodily injury, inflicting upon him several wounds and bruises.”
The case went to trial and the District Court of San Juan, Section 2, found the accused guilty of the crime of aggravated assault and battery and sentenced him to imprisonment for. eight months in jail. Thereupon the defendant appealed to this court.
The first of the errors assigned by the appellant is that the facts charged in the information do not constitute the crime of aggravated assault and battery. After a careful .consideration of the case we are compelled to agree with the appellant. The law is so clear and the jurisprudence of this court so ample on this point that it is difficult to understand how the officials entrusted with the prosecution of crimes in this island can fall into error. "When a charge of aggravated assault and battery is made, some of the aggravating
This being the case, it is not possible to sustain technically that the assault and battery was aggravated. The commission of an aggravated assault and battery may be inferred from the record as a whole, but the court cannot take the circumstances into account, The accused, a citizen, has invoked
Another of the errors assigned by the appellant is that the evidence does not show that he committed the crime under consideration. We have considered the evidence and in onr opinion it proves beyond all reasonable doubt that the defendant assaulted and beat the person designated in the information with intent to cause injury to his person.
Therefore, no aggravating circumstances having been proved, but it having been shown that the defendant committed the offense of simple assault and battery, the judgment appealed from should be modified accordingly and the accused sentenced to pay .a fine of $50 and, in default of payment, to be imprisoned one day 'for each dollar not paid.
Modified and affirmed.
Case-law data current through December 31, 2025. Source: CourtListener bulk data.