Life is Beautiful

  "The greatest gift in life is not easy to come by, and once acquired, it should be treasured for all time."

" What does it profit a man if he gains the whole world and loses his own soul?"

FACTS

A has been staying in X Hotel, a five-star hotel, for a period of three days. On the morning of his 4^th day stay, he was found in his hotel room dead with his hands tied and a phone cord tied around his neck.

            The only evidence available is a video tape which was recorded by the security camera of the hotel for the particular floor where A is staying. The video footage was taken the night before he was found dead and showed that a girl visited him and entered his room followed by a man, both of whom were non-guests and non-employees of the hotel. Afterwards, they were both caught in tape leaving A’s room together.

ARGUMENT

            It is hereby contended by the hotel that they are not liable because the suspects were not employees of the hotel.

CONCLUSION

            A hotel cannot be held liable criminally nor civilly liable for a crime committed on its premises unless the same have been committed by its employees or caused by its negligence, for the following reasons:

1. Art. 102 of the Revised Penal Code provides, 

“In default of the persons criminally liable, innkeepers, tavernkeepers and any other persons or corporations shall be civilly liable for crimes committed in their establishment, in all cases where a violation of municipal ordinances or some general or special police regulations shall have been committed by them or their employees. xxxx”

Ø       Based on the facts presented, there was no violation of a municipal ordinance or any police regulations. Therefore, the subsidiary liability under this article cannot attach to the hotel.

2. Neither can the hotel be held liable for quasi-delict under Art. 2176 in relation to Art. 2180 of the New Civil Code.

ART. 2176:        Whoever by act or omission causes damage to another, there being fault or negligence, is obliged to pay for the damage done. Such fault or negligence, if there is no pre-existing contractual relation between the parties, is called a quasi-delict.

ART. 2180: The obligation imposed by Art. 2176 is demandable not only for one’s own acts or omission, but also for those persons for whom one is responsible.

                        x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x

The owners and managers of an establishment or enterprise are likewise responsible for damages caused by their employees in the service of the branches in which the latter are employed or on the occasion of their functions.

Ø       The 3 elements of quasi-delict are:

a.       damages suffered by the plaintiff,

b.       fault or negligence of the defendant, or some other person for whose acts he must respond, and

c.       the connection of cause and effect between the fault  or negligence of the defendants and the damages incurred by the plaintiff. ( PB Com vs. CA, 269 SCRA 695).

No negligence can be imputed on the hotel, as well as its employees. Under Chapter 2, Sec. 3(i) of the Rules and Regulations Governing the Accreditation of Hotels by the Department of Tourism, “Adequate security on a 24-hour basis shall be provided in all entrances and exits of the hotel premises”.

It appears from the cited rule that the obligation of the hotel extends only to providing adequate security in all entrances and exits. It is noteworthy that the hotel had more than complied with such obligation when it provided one (1) security personnel for every 3 floors. So much so that the hotel had overcome the presumption of negligence.

            Furthermore, the vicarious liability imposed by Art. 2180 is applicable only when a damage or injury is caused by the employees of the owners and managers of a given establishment. In the present case the facts reveal that the tragic death of the hotel guest is not being imputed against any of the hotel employees.

3. Art. 1998 of the New Civil Code provides that “The deposit of effects made by travelers in hotels and inns shall also be regarded as necessary. The keepers of hotels or inns shall be responsible for them as depositaries xxxxxxxx”

Ø       This provision is also not of application to the instant case. This article contemplates the liability of a hotel with respect only to goods or effects brought into their premises.

4. Lastly, based on the PREMISES LIABILITY PRINCIPLE, the owners and operators of establishments are liable for the injuries or death committed within their premises if the incident could have been anticipated or foreseeable on their part and could have prevented it, either by providing warnings or taking better security measures.

It is now generally recognized, however, that a landlord of commercial or residential property has a duty to take reasonable precautions to protect persons lawfully in the common areas from reasonably foreseeable risks, including the foreseeable risk of criminal activity of third parties. While a landlord, commercial or residential, is not the guarantor of safety of persons in a building’s common area, the law imposes on a landlord a duty to take reasonable precautions to protect persons lawfully in the common areas against reasonably foreseeable risks, and "where there have been repeated acts in a particular area, which demonstrate that such acts are likely to occur in the future, the landlord need not know of the identity and background of the attacker in order to be liable".  —Foley v. Boston Housing Authority, 407 Mass. 640, 645 (1990).

Ø       The issue of foreseeability is critical. It is necessary to show that the premises owner or person in control knew or should have known that crimes were likely to occur on their premises, and therefore had a duty to take reasonable precautions to prevent these occurrences and to protect their tenant or customer from injury. What precautions had to have been taken by the landlord or manager will depend on the facts of the case.

Prior criminal acts are simply one factor among others to establish the foreseeability of the act of the third party. However, since Mullins, the Massachusetts Appeals Court has stated that under some circumstances, proof of prior crimes may be necessary. In Magaw v. MBTA, 21 Mass. App. Ct. 129, 485 N.E.2d 695 (1985), a woman was robbed in an unlit MBTA tunnel. The court upheld the jury’s verdict holding the MBTA liable and the attack foreseeable, but in so holding, recognized that there are some cases where the number or degree of prior incidents may be so inconsequential that a judge may rule as a matter of law that they are insufficient to place the defendant on notice of inadequate security.

However, in Sharp v. Peter Pan Bus Lines, 401 Mass. 788, 519 N.E.2d 1341 (1988), a sharply divided court held that the stabbing death of the plaintiff while she waited inside the bus station, was reasonably foreseeable, and that the defendant was liable for failure to provide a uniformed security guard to prevent such an assault, or at least to deter the would-be assailant. The court relied heavily on the fact that the bus station was in an area of high criminal activity, and concluded that the jury could find that even this sudden, unprovoked attack could have been prevented by the presence of uniform security guards. There was a strong dissent, arguing that the stabbing was not reasonably foreseeable. While there was evidence of crimes, "winos" and derelicts, the dissent’s position was that there was insufficient evidence of prior, similar criminal attacks to make homicide foreseeable. There was no evidence of any previous murders at the station.

In Flood v. Southland Corp., 416 Mass. 62 616 N.E.2d 1068 (1993), the court upheld the verdict in favor of a young customer who was stabbed outside the convenience store. The court found that the store clerk should have foreseen that someone could be stabbed where a group of boys entered the store and appeared "pretty high", and where one of the boys was carrying a knife. In Flood, there was also a strong dissent.

Ø       In the case at hand, the circumstances surrounding the death of the victim cannot be said to have been foreseeable. The crime was perpetrated without the use of any deadly weapon. Nor can it be shown that the suspects were armed when they entered the hotel’s premises, which would have been detected upon entry.

Ø       Furthermore, the hotel has no control over the actions of their guests and the visitors of their guests once they enter the premises. It would be absurd to suspect every person who would enter the hotel as having criminal intent.

Ø       With all the foregoing discussions, the incident could not be regarded as foreseeable so as to attach liability to the hotel.

  to my friend carol, get well soon. her tummy ached and vomitted during our trial court subject. kid and i accompanied her to the health clinic and found out that there was a food-poison outbreak in the undergrads…. and sad to say, carol was also a victim…they ate at the store in what they call as "tayuman" at feu…. so to all tamaraws and everyone for that matter, be careful with what you eat… better to be sure rather taking the risk of being a food-poison survivor, hehehehe.

Remember me when I am gone,

Gone away into the silent land;

When you can no more hold me by the hand.

Yet, if you should forget me for a while

And afterwards, remember, do not grieve.

For if the darkness and corruption leave

a vestige of the thoughts that once I had,

Better by far you should forget and smile

Than that you should remember and be sad……

Letter of Garrett to Theresa:

Dear Theresa,

Can you forgive me?

In a world that I seldom understand, there are winds of destiny that blow when we least expect them. Sometimes they gust with the fury of a hurricane, sometimes they barely fan one’s cheek. But the winds cannot be denied, bringing as they often do a future that is impossible to ignore. You, my darling, are the wind that I did not anticipate, the wind that has gusted more strongly than I ever imagined possible. You are my destiny.

I was wrong, so wrong, to ignore what was obvious, and I beg your forgiveness. Like a cautious traveler, I tried to protect myself from the wind and lost my sould instead. I was a fool to ignor my destiny, but even fools have feelings, and I’ve come to realize that you are the most important thing that I have in this world.

I know I am not perfect. I’ve made more mistakes in the past few months than some make in a lifetime. I was wrong to have acted as I did when I found the letters, just as I was wrong to hide the truth about what I was going through with repect to my past. When I chased you are you drove down the street and again as I watched you leave from the airport, I knew I whould have tried harder to stop you. But most of all, I was wrong to deny what  was obvious in my heart: that I can’t go on without you.

You were right about everything. When we sat in my kitchen, I tried to deny the things you were saying, even though I knew they were true. Like a man who gazes only backward on a trip across the country, I ignored what lay ahead. I missed the beauty of a coming sunrise, the wonder of anticipation that makes life worthwile. It was wrong of me to do that, a product of my confusion, and I wish I had come to understand that sooner.

Now, though, with my gaze fixed towards the future, I see your face and hear your voice, certain that this is the path I must follow. IT is my deepest wish that you give me one more chance. As you might have guessed, I’m hoping that this bottle will work its magic, as it did once before, and somehow bring us back together.

For the first few days after you left, I wanted to believe that I gould go on as I always had. But I couldn’t. Every time I watched the sun go down, I thought of you. Every time I walked by the phone, i yearned to call. Even when I went sailing, I could only think of you and the wonderful times we had. I knew in my heart that my life would never be the same again. I wanted you back, more than I imagined possible, yet whenever I conjured you up, I kept hearing your words in our last conversation. No matter how much I loved you, I knew it wasn’t going to be possible unlesss we — both of us — were sure I would devote myself fully to the path that lay ahead. I continued to be troubled by these thoughts until late last night when the anwer finally came to me. Hopefully, after I tell you, it will mean as much to you as it did to me:

In my dream, I saw myself on the beach, with Catherine, in the same spot I took you after our lunch at Hank’s. It was bright in the sun, the ray reflecting brilliantly off the sand. AS we walked along- side each other, she listened as I told her about you, about us, about the wonderful times we shared. Finally, after some hesitation, I admitted that I loved you, but that I felt guilty about it. She said nothing right away but simply kept walking until she finally turned to me and asked, "Why?"

"Because of you".

Upon hearing my answer, she smiled at me with patient amusement, the way she used to before she died. "Oh Garrett," she finally said as she gently touched my face, "who do you think it was that brougth the bottle to her?"

When I woke up, I felt empty and alone. The dream did not comfort me. RAther, it made me ache inside because of what I had done to us, and I began to cry. When I finally pulled myself together, I knew what I had to do. With shaking hand, I wrote 2 letters: the one you’re holding in your hand right now, and one to CAtherine, in which I finally said my good-bye. Today, I’m taking Happenstance out to send it to her, as I have with all the others. I will by my last letter — Catherine, in her own way, has told me to go on, and I have chosen to listen. Not only to her words, but also to the leanings of my heart that led me back to you.

Oh Theresa, I am sorry, so very sorry, that I ever hurt you. I am coming to Boston next week with the hope that you find  a way to forgive me. Maybe I’m too late now. I don’t know.

Theresa, I love you and I always will. I am tired of being alone. I see children crying and laughing as they play in the sand, and I realize I want to have children with you. I want to watch kevin as he grows into a man. I want to hold your hand and see you cry when he finally takes a bride, I want to kiss you when his dreams come true. I will move to Boston if you ask because I cannot go on this way. I am sick and sad without you. As i sit here in the ktichen, I am praying that you will let me come back to you, this time forever.

Garrett

MAXENE of Carol….

Dear Jules,

I know that if you’re reading this letter, i’ve already passed away. I don’t know how long I’ve been gone, but I hope you’ve been able to begin healing. I know that if I were in you position, it would be hard for me, but you know I’ve always believed you were the stronger of the two of us….

I guess I always knew at the back of my mind that i wasn’t going to make it. I didn’t want to think about it, though, because I knew that you didn’t have anyone to help you get through something like this. Family, I mean. It broke my heart to think that you would be all alone…..

I hope you’re doing all right. Since I got sick, I’ve worried non-stop about that. I love you, Jules, I really do. I was the luckiest guy in the world when you came into my life. It would break my heart if I thought you’d never be happy again. So please do that for me. Be happy again. Find someone who makes you happy. It might be hard, you might not think it’s possible, but I’d like you to try. The world is a better place when you smile.

And don’t worry. From wherever I am, I’ll watch out for you. I’ll be your guardian angel, sweetheart. You can count on me to keep you safe.

I love you,

Jim

Social justice is neither communism nor despotism nor atomism nor anarchy but the humanization of laws and and the equalization of social and economic forces by the state so that justice in its rational and objectively secular conception may at least be approximated. Social justice means the promotion of the welfare of all the people, the adoption by the government of all measures calculated to insure economic stability of all the competent elements of the society, through the maintenance of proper social equilibrium in the interrelations of all the members of the community, consitutionally, through the adoption of means legally justifiable, or extraconstitutionally, through the exercise of powers underlying the existence of all governments on the time-honored principle of  SALUS POPULI EST SUPREMA LEX….. otherwise stated, those who have less in life should have more in law….. (Calalang vs. Williams penned by J. Laurel)