CRIMINAL LAW 1 REVIEWER

CRIMINAL LAW, defined.

- Is that branch or division of law which defines crimes, treats of their
nature, and provides for their punishment.

CRIME, defined.
- Act committed or omitted in violation of a public law forbidding or
commanding it.

SOURCES of PHILIPPINE CRIMINAL LAW

1) The Revised Penal Code and its amendments
2) Special Penal Laws passed by the Philippine Commission, Philippine
Assembly, Philippine Legislature, National Assembly, the Congress of the
Philippines, and the Batasang Pambansa
3) Penal Presidential Decrees issued during Martial Law

Court decisions are not sources of criminal law, because they merely explain the
meaning of, and apply, the law as enacted by the legislative branch of the
government.

POWER TO DEFINE & PUNISH CRIMES.

The State has the authority, under its police power, to define and punish
crimes and to lay down the rules of criminal procedure.

LIMITATIONS ON THE POWER OF THE LAWMAKING BODY TO ENACT PENAL

LEGISLATION
***The Bill of Rights of the 1987 Constitution imposes the following limitations:
1) No ex post facto law or bill of attainder shall be enacted (Art. III, Sec. 22)
2) No person shall be held to answer for a criminal offense without due process
(Art. III, Sec. 14)

An ex post facto law is one which:

1) Makes criminal an act done before the passage of the law and which was
innocent when done, and punishes such an act
2) Aggravates a crime, or makes it greater than it was, when committed
3) Changes the punishment and inflicts a greater punishment than the law
annexed to the crime when committed
4) Alters the legal rules of evidence, and authorizes conviction upon less or
different testimony than the law required at the time of the commission of
the offense
5) Assumes to regulate civil rights and remedies only, in effect imposes penalty
or deprivation of a right for something when done was lawful; and
6) Deprives a person accused of a crime some lawful protection to which he has
become entitled, such as the protection of a former conviction or acquittal, or
a proclamation of an amnesty.

Bill of attainder is a legislative act which inflicts punishment without trial.

CONSTITUTIONAL RIGHTS OF THE ACCUSED

1) All persons shall have the right to a speedy disposition of their cases before
all judicial, quasi-judicial or administrative bodies
 2) No person shall be held to answer for a criminal offense without due process
of law
3) The right to bail shall not be impaired even when the writ of habeas corpus is
suspended, except those charged with offenses punishable by reclusion
perpetua when evidence of guilt is strong
4) In all criminal prosecutions, the accused shall:
- Be presumed innocent until the contrary is proved
- Enjoy the right to be heard by himself and counsel
- Be informed of the nature and cause of the accusation against him
- To have speedy, impartial and public trial
- To meet the witnesses face to face
- Have the compulsory process to secure the attendance of witnesses and
the production of evidence in his behalf
5) No person shall be compelled to be a witness against himself
6) Excessive fines shall not be imposed, nor cruel, degrading or inhuman
punishment inflicted
7) No person shall be twice put in jeopardy of punishment for the same offense
8) Free access to the courts and quasi-judicial bodies and adequate legal
assistance shall not be denied to any person by reason of poverty

RIGHT WHICH MAY BE WAIVED right of the accused to confrontation and cross-
examination (personal)
RIGHT WHICH MAY NOT BE WAIVED - the right of the accused to be informed of
the nature and cause of the accusation against him. (involve public interest )

CHARACTERISTICS OF CRIMINAL LAW

1) GENERAL Binding on all persons who live or sojourn in the Philippine
territory
(except those provided in treaties and laws of preferential application)
2) TERRITORIAL Penal laws of the Philippines are enforceable only within its
territory
Exceptions:
1) Should commit an offense while on a Philippine ship or airship
2) Should forge or counterfeit any coin or currency note of the Philippines or
obligations and securities issued by the Government of the Philippines
3) Should be liable for acts connected with the introduction into the
Philippines of the obligations and securities mentioned in the preceding
number
4) While being public officers or employees, should commit an offense in the
exercise of their functions; or
5) Should commit any of the crimes against national security and the law of
nations
3) PROSPECTIVE- crimes are punished under the laws in force at the time of
their commission
Exceptions:
1) Where the new law is expressly made inapplicable to pending actions or
existing causes of actions
2) Where the offender is a habitual criminal

EFFECTS OF REPEAL ON PENAL LAW

- If repeal makes penalty lighter in the new law, new law shall be applied
(except for habitual delinquents or if expressly made inapplicable)
 - If new law imposes heavier penalty, law in force at the time of the
commission of the offense shall be applied
- Of new law totally repeals existing law and act done is no longer
punishable, crime is obliterated.

WHEN REPEAL IS ABSOLUTE, the offense ceases to be criminal.

ARTICLE 1. TIME WHEN ACT TAKES EFFECT

- This code shall take effect on January 1, 1932.

TWO THEORIES IN CRIMINAL LAW

1) CLASSICAL basis of criminal liability is human free will and the purpose of
the penalty is retribution
2) POSITIVIST that man is subdued occasionally by a strange and morbid
phenomenon which constrains him to do wrong, in spite or contrary of his
volition.

ARTICLE 2. APPLICATION OF ITS PROVISIONS

- Except as provided in the treaties and laws of preferential
application, the provisions of this Code shall be enforced not only
within the Philippine Archipelago, including its atmosphere, its
interior waters and maritime zone, but also outside of its
jurisdiction, against those who:
1) Should commit an offense while on a Philippine ship or airship
2) Should forge or counterfeit any coin or currency note of the Philippines
or obligations and securities issued by the Government of the
Philippines
3) Should be liable for acts connected with the introduction into the
Philippines of the obligations and securities mentioned in the preceding
number
4) While being public officers or employees, should commit an offense in
the exercise of their functions; or
5) Should commit any of the crimes against national security and the law
of nations.

FRENCH RULE such crimes are not triable in the courts of that country , unless
their commission affects the peace and security of the territory or the safety of the
state is endangered.

ENGLISH RULE such crimes are triable in that country, unless they merely affect
things within the vessel or they refer to the internal management thereof.

***WE OBSERVE the ENGLISH RULE

EXTRA TERRITORIAL APPLICATION OF REPUBLIC ACT NO. 9372 otherwise

known as HUMAN SECURITY ACT of 2007, has extra-territorial application and
applies to individual persons who:
 1) Commit any of the crimes defined and punished in the Act within the
terrestrial domain, interior waters, maritime zone and airspace of the
Philippines
2) Although physically outside the territorial limits of the Philippines, commit,
conspire of plot any of the crimes defined and punished in the Act inside the
territorial limits of the Philippines.
3) Although physically outside the territorial limits of the Philippines, commit
any of the said crimes on board Philippine ship or airship
4) While within any embassy, consulate, or diplomatic premises belonging to or
occupied by the Philippine government in an official capacity
5) Although physically outside the territorial limits of the Philippines, commit
said crimes against Philippine citizens or persons of Philippine descent, where
their citizenship or ethnicity was a factor in the commission of the crime; and
6) Although physically outside the territorial limits of the Philippines, commit
said crimes directly against the Philippine government.

FELONIES AND CIRCUMSTANCES WHICH AFFECT CRIMINAL LIABILITY

ARTICLE 3. DEFINITION.
- Acts and omissions punishable by law (RPC) are felonies.
- Felonies are committed by means of deceit (dolo) and by means of fault
(culpa)
- There is deceit when the act is performed with deliberate intent
- There is fault when the wrongful act results from imprudence, negligence,
lack of foresight or lack of skill
FELONIES
- Are acts and omissions punishable by the Revised Penal Code
Elements / Requisites of FELONIES:
1) That there must be an act or omission
2) That the act or omission is punishable by law
3) That the act is performed or the omission incurred by means of dolo or culpa.

ACT any bodily movement tending to produce some effect in the external world, it
being unnecessary that the same be actually produced, as the possibility of its
production is sufficient.

OVERT ACT an external act which has direct connection with the felony intended
to be committed.
OMISSION
- Means inaction, the failure to perform a positive duty which one is bound
to do. There must be a law requiring the doing or performance of an act.

***THERE IS NO CRIME WHEN THERE IS NO LAW PUNISHING IT

CLASSIFICATION OF FELONIES
1) INTENTIONAL FELONIES
- Act is performed with deliberate intent
- Offender has the intention to cause an injury to another
- Offender acts with malice
2) CULPABLE FELONIES
 - Act or omission of the offender is not malicious
- Injury caused to another person is unintentional
- Wrongful act results from imprudence, negligence, lack of foresight, or
lack of skill

IMPRUDENCE indicates a deficiency of action (involves lack of skill)

NEGLIGENCE indicates a deficiency of perception (involves lack of foresight)

REASON FOR PUNISHING ACTS OF NEGLIGENCE

- A man must use common sense, and exercise due reflection in all his acts,
it is his duty to be cautious, careful and prudent to avoid any manner of
danger and injury to other persons rights and property.

REQUISITES OF DOLO OR MALICE

1) FREEDOM while doing or omitting to do an act
2) INTELLIGENCE while doing or omitting to do an act
3) INTENT while doing or omitting to do an act

REQUISITES OF FAULT/CULPA
1) FREEDOM while doing or omitting to do an act
2) INTELLIGENCE while doing or omitting to do an act
3) IMPRUDENT, NEGLIGENT, LACKS FORESIGHT OR SKILL while doing or
omitting to do the act

MISTAKE OF FACT
- Is a misapprehension of fact on t he part of the person who caused injury
to another

REQUISITES OF MISTAKE OF FACT

1) That the act done would have been lawful had the facts been as the accused
believed them to be
2) That the intention of the accused in performing the act should have been
lawful
3) That the mistake must be without fault or carelessness on the part of the
accused.

MALA IN SE
- there is criminal intent
- refers generally to felonies defined and penalized by the RPC
- acts are inherently immoral

MALA PROHIBITA
- it is sufficient if the prohibited act was intentionally done
- Refers generally to acts made criminal by special laws
- The only question is Has the law been violated?

MOTIVE - Is the moving power which impels one to action for a definite result
INTENT - Is the purpose to use particular means to effect such result

ART. 4. CRIMINAL LIABILITY

 - Criminal liability shall be incurred:
1) By any person committing a felony (delito) although the wrongful act
done be different from that which he intended.

REQUISITES:
- That an intentional felony has been committed;; and
- That the wrong done to the aggrieved party be the direct and logical
consequence of the felony committed by the offender

2) By any person performing an act which would be an offense against

persons or property, were it not for the inherent impossibility of its
accomplishment or on account of the employment of inadequate or
ineffectual means. (impossible crimes)

ONE WHO COMMITS AN INTENTIONAL FELONY IS RESPONSIBLE FOR ALL

THE CONSEQUENCES WHICH NATURALLY AND LOGICALLY RESULT
THEREFROM, WHETHER FORESEEN OR INTENDED OR NOT.

EL QUE ES CAUSA DE LA CAUSA ES CAUSA DEL MAL CAUSADO he who is

the cause of the cause is the cause of the evil caused

A) ERROR IN PERSONAE (mistake in the identity of the victim)

B) ABERRATIO ICTUS (mistake in the blow)
C) PRAETER INTIONTIONEM (injurious result is greater than that intended)

IMPOSSIBLE CRIMES
- The commission of an impossible crime is indicative of criminal propensity
or criminal tendency on the part of the actor. Such person is a potential
criminal.
REQUISITES of IMPOSSIBLE CRIME:
- That the act performed would be an offense against persons or property
- That the act was done with evil intent
- That its accomplishment is inherently impossible, or that the means
employed is either inadequate or ineffectual
- That the act performed should not constitute a violation of another
provision of the RPC

FELONIES AGAINST PERSONS FELONIES

AGAINST PROPERTY
a) Parricide a) Robbery
b) Murder b) Brigandage
c) Homicide c) Theft
d) Infanticide d) Usurpation
e) Abortion e) Culpable insolvency
f) Duel f) Swindling & other
deceits
g) Physical injuries g) Chattel mortgage
h) Rape h) Arson and other crimes
involving destruction
i) Malicious mischief
ART. 5. DUTY OF THE COURT IN CONNECTION WITH ACTS WHICH SHOULD
BE REPRESSES BUT WHICH ARE NOT COVERED BY THE LAW, AND IN CASES
OF EXCESSIVE PENALTIES.
Whenever a court has knowledge of any act which it may deem proper to
repress and which is not punishable by law, it shall render the proper decision and
shall report to the Chief Executive, through the Department of Justice, the reasons
which induce the court to believe that said act should be made the subject of penal
legislation.
In the same way, the court shall submit to the Chief Executive, through the
Department of Justice, such statement as may be deemed proper, without
suspending the execution of the sentence, when a strict enforcement of the
provisions of this Code would result in the imposition of clearly excessive penalty,
taking into consideration the degree of malice and the injury caused by the offense.

ACTS WHICH SHOULD BE REPRESSED

1) The act committed by the accused appears not punishable by any law
2) But the court deems it proper to repress such act
3) In that case, court must render the proper decision by dismissing the case
and acquitting the accused
4) The judge must then make a report to the Chief Executive through the
Secretary of Justice, stating the reasons which induce him to believe that the
said act should be made the subject of penal legislation.

IN CASES OF EXCESSIVE PENALTIES

1) The court after trial finds the accused guilty
2) The penalty provided by law and which the court imposes for the crime
committed appears to be clearly excessive, because:
a) The accused acted with lesser degree of malice, abd/or;
b) There is no injury or the injury caused is of lesser gravity.
3) The court should not suspend the execution of the sentence
4) The judge should submit a statement to the Chief Executive, through the
Secretary of Justice, recommending executive clemency.

COURTS HAVE THE DUTY TO APPLY THE PENALTY PROVIDED BY LAW.

JUDGE HASTHE DUTY TO APPLY THE LAW AS INTERPRETED BY THE
SUPREME COURT.

ARTS. 6 TO 13 SEE NOTES