People v. Irlanda
People v. Irlanda
Opinion of the Court
delivered the opinion of the-Court.
In this case a complaint was filed against José Torres and' Francisco Irlanda charging a breach of the peace in that they had engaged in a fight in which they assaulted and! bruised one another. After a trial of the case on appeal before the District Court of Ponce, both defendants were found guilty and each vias sentenced to pay a fine of $10 and, in default of payment thereof, to be confined in jail one day for each dollar left unpaid. Francisco Irlanda appealed, claiming that the District Court of Ponce had erred in finding him guilty of a breach of the peace. The judgment of the lower court was based on the evidence offered by the prosecution and on the testimony of the defendants, José Torres and Francisco Irlanda. The witnesses for the prosecution testified that they did not know how the fight had started; that they only saw that between eight and nine o ’clock at night defendants Irlanda and Torres were walking, one behind the other, toward the river1; thay they were talking to one another but that the witnesses could not hear what they were saying; and that then, when near the river, the defendants had a fight in which blows were exchanged. Alfonso Alvarado, a witness for defendant Francisco Ir-landa, testified that while he was on the sidewalk of a small café known as “Pali” oil Cuatro de Julio Street,- he heard
“Do you say that you have uot borrowed money from me?
“No, sir.
*307 “Do you not remember that we were at the Union at Teclo Pagan’s house one day when yon were celebrating there and that you said to me ‘Lend me five dollars’, you remember that yon were the promoter of the sign put up at the Union, that I said to you right in front of Teclo and Natividad Torres ‘I’ll give you $1.50 for the sign and yon return the other $3.50.’
“No, sir.
“Think hard — look I want to be frank, you even ate with us there.. . .
“I don’t remember.
“Furthermore, remember that Venero Torres, my brother, and Nito Carme were there ....
“I don’t remember.
“You do not remember?
“No, sir, I do not remember that.”
In view of this evidence the court found .both defendants guilty, stating that it had no doubt whatsoever as to the guilt of both defendants. No charge of passion, prejudice, bias, or manifest error on the part of the lower court is made. The defendant invokes the doctrine laid down in the cases of People v. Franquis, 24 P.R.R. 575, and People v. Sánchez, 42 P.R.R. 390, which can not be applied to the instant case, where the evidence as to who delivered the first blow and as to who started the fight is conflicting, and where the court, after weighing the evidence, found both defendants guilty.
Tn our opinion the lower court weighed the evidence correctly and the judgment appealed from must be affirmed.
Case-law data current through December 31, 2025. Source: CourtListener bulk data.