CA affirms murder conviction for road rage shooter Jason Ivler

The Court of Appeals (CA) has affirmed the decision of a Quezon City court that sentenced road rage shooter Jason Ivler to life imprisonment for the killing of the son of a former Malacañang official in 2009.

Ivler failed to convince the CA 14th Division to overturn the guilty verdict slapped by Judge Luisito Cortez of the Quezon City Regional Trial Court Branch 84 on November 24, 2015 in relation to the death of Renato Ebarle Jr., son and namesake of former Presidential Chief of Staff Renato Ebarle Sr., who served under the Arroyo administration.

“We uphold the accused-appellant’s conviction. Contrary to Ivler’s contention, the prosecution has proven all of the elements of murder,” the CA said in a decision dated November 28.

Ivler, nephew of folk singer Freddie Aguilar, shot Ebarle Jr. dead over a traffic altercation in Quezon City on November 18, 2009.

After the shooting, witnesses said Ivler sped off from the crime scene in a Honda CR-V which later turned out to be owned by his stepfather, British diplomat Stephen James Pollard.

Ivler was arrested on Jan. 18, 2010 following a shootout with agents of the National Bureau of Investigation at the residence of his mother, Marlene Aguilar, in Quezon City.

The trial court sentenced Ivler with reclusion perpetua or a maximum jail term of 40 years and was ordered to pay the Ebarle family a total of P9.373 million for civil damages.

In its decision, the CA modified the damages set by the lower court and increased the actual damages representing burial expenses to P616,590 from P143,890; moral damages to P100,000 from P75,000; exemplary damages to P100,000 from P30,000. The appellate court also ordered Ivler to pay civil indemnity amounting to P100,000.

The amount of damages is to earn an interest rate of 6 percent per year from the time of finality of decision until fully paid.

The CA rejected Ivler’s argument that  Senior Police Officer 3 Edgar Tiodin and bystander Archie Castillo failed to positively identify him as the one who shot Ebarle Jr.

“He claims that the eyewitnesses had no ample opportunity to view the perpetrator because the crime rapidly unfolded in front of them and they lacked focus as they were inflicted with a paralyzing fear brought by a shocking experience,” the decision stated.

“It is not unnatural for the eyewitnesses to have a detailed recollection of the incident especially the identity of the shooter. It is not improbable that they could, with certainty, identify Ivler as the man who shot Renato Ebarle Jr.,” it said.

According to the CA, the trial court noted the eyewitnesses—based on their testimonies—were able to establish they were three to five meters away from where the shooting happened and that the place was well-lit making it “entirely possible” for them to identify Ivler as the gunman.

“There was also no competing event to draw the witnesses’ attention away from the incident, i.e., no distraction that could have disrupted the witnesses’ attention at the time of the incident. Hence, there was ample opportunity for SPO3 Tiodin and Castillo to view the face of the shooter,” the CA said.

The justices said Ivler “could only muster alibi” in support of his claim that he did not commit murder.

The CA also backed the trial court’s finding that treachery aggravated the crime to murder.

"Renato Ebarle Jr. was totally unaware that he would be treacherously shot in the comfort of his own car while waiting for the stoplight before him to turn green. He was unarmed and was not given any opportunity to defend himself or to escape from the deadly assault,” the decision stated.

“The deadly successive shots of the accused-appellant deprived the helpless victim of any opportunity to put up a decent defense. The attack was executed by the accused-appellant so viciously that a defense was virtually impossible,” it added.

Associate Justice Ramon Cruz penned the decision, and Associate Justices Ricardo Rosario and Pablito Perez concurred with the ruling. — VDS, GMA News