CRIMINAL LAW
(took effect on July 14, 1887 until December 31,
CRIMINAL LAW, defined.
Branch or division of law which defines crimes, treats
of their nature, and provides for their punishment.
CRIME, defined.
An Act COMMITED or OMITTED in violation of a
public law FORBIDDING or COMMANDING it
SOURCES OF PH CRIM LAW
1. The Revised Penal Code (Act No. 3815) and its
amendments
2. Special Penal Laws passed by
a. PH Commission
b. PH Assembly
c. PH Legislature
d. National Assembly
e. Congress of the PH
f. Batasang Pambansa
3. Penal Presidential Decrees issued during Martial
Law
LIMITATIONS ON THE POWER OF THE LAW-MAKING
BODY TO ENACT PENAL LEGISLATION
The Bill of Rights of the 1987 Consti imposes the ff
limitations:
I. No ex post facto law or bill of attainder shall be
enacted. (Art 3, Sec 22.)
WHAT IS AN EX POST FACTO LAW?
1. Makes criminal act an act done before the
passage of the law and which was innocent
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 which when done
was lawful, and
6. Deprives a person accused of a crime some
lawful protection to which he has become
entitled
WHAT IS A BILL OF ATTAINDER?
A legislative act which inflicts punishment without
trial. Its essence is the substitution of a legislative
act for a judicial determination of guilt.
II. No person shall be held to answer for a
criminal offense w/o due process of law. (Art 3,
Sec 14[1].)
CHARACTERISTICS OF CRIMINAL LAW
1. GENERAL – Binding on all persons who live or
sojourn in the PH (Art 14, NCC.)
2. TERRITORIAL – Undertake to punish crimes
committed WITHIN THE PH TERRITORY
3. PROSPECTIVE – A penal law cannot make an
act punishable in a manner in wc it was not
punishable when committed
THE REVISED PENAL CODE
HISTORY
 The Code which replaced the old Penal Code
1931).
 Enacted by the Philippine Legislature, and
approved on December 8, 1930.
 Took effect on January 1, 1932.
TWO BOOKS
 Book I
o ARTS 1-20: Basic principles affecting
criminal liability
o ARTS 21-113: Provisions on penalties
including criminal and civil liability
 Book II
o ARTS 114-365: Felonies w corresponding
penalties, classified and grouped under 14
different titles.
ART. 1. TIME WHEN ACT TAKES EFFECT
This Code shall take effect on the first day of January,
nineteen hundred and thirty-two.
ART. 2. APPLICATION OF ITS PROVISIONS.
Except as provided
In the treaties and law 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 who:
1. Should commit an offense
While on a PH ship or airship
2. Should forge or counterfeit
Any coin or currency note of the PH Islands
Or obligations and securities
Issued by the Gov’t of the PH Islands
3. Should be liable for acts
Connected with the introduction into these
Islands
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
5. Should commit any of the crimes
Against national security, and the law of the
nations
Defined in Title 1 of Book 2 of this Code.
RULES AS TO JURISDICTION OVER CRIMES
COMMITTED ABOARD FOREIGN MERCHANT
VESSELS
 FRENCH RULE – Yung vessel niyo, hindi talaga
sakop ng country na ‘yun, UNLESS maapektuhan
sila o ang country nila, saka lang.
 ENGLISH RULE – Pagpasok mo sa country nila,
sakop ka talaga nila, UNLESS ang crime mo ay
hindi makaapekto sa peace nila.
In the Philippines, we follow the ENGLISH RULE.
RULE AS TO FOREIGN WARSHIPS ON TERRITORIAL
WATERS
 PH Courts have NO JURISDICTION over
offenses committed on board FOREIGN
WARSHIPS
 Warships are always reputed to be the
TERRITORY OF THE COUNTRY TO WHICH
 THEY BELONG and cannot be subjected to the
laws of another state
TITLE ONE – FELONIES AND CIRCUMSTANCES
WHICH AFFECT CRIMINAL LIABILITY
CHAPTER ONE – FELONIES
ART. 3. DEFINITION
Acts and omissions punishable by laws
Are called felonies (delitos).
Felonies are committed
(1) not only by means of deceit (dolo)
(2) but also by means of fault (culpa).
There is deceit when
The act is performed with deliberate intent;
And there is fault when
The wrongful act results from
Imprudence, negligence,
Lack of foresight, or lack of skill.
ELEMENTS OF FELONIES
1. There must be an act or omission
2. That act or omission must be punishable by the
RPC
3. The act performed or the omission incurred by
means of dolo or culpa
REQUISITES OF DECEIT (OR DOLO)
1. Offender must have FREEDOM while doing an
act or omitting to do an act
2. Offender must have INTELLIGENCE “”
3. Offender must have INTENT “”
REQUISITES OF FAULT (OR CULPA)
1. Offender must have FREEDOM
2. Offender must have INTELLIGENCE
3. Offender is IMPRUDENT, NEGLIGENT, or
LACKS FORESIGHT or SKILL, while doing the
act or omitting to do the act.
MALA IN SE and MALA PROHIBITA, distinguished.
 MALA IN SE
o Crimes wrongful in their nature (theft,
rape, homicide). Inherently immoral.
 MALA PROHIBITA
o Wrong merely because prohibited by
statute (illegal possession of firearms).
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.
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.
CIRCUMSTANCES WHICH STILL INCUR CRIMINAL
LIABILITY UNDER ART. 4
 Mistake in the identity of the victim (error in
personae)
 Mistake in the blow (aberratio ictus)
o EX: A discharged his firearm at B, but
because of lack of precision, hit and
seriously wounded B. A is still criminally
liable for the injury caused to B.
 The injurious result is greater than that intended
(praeter intentionem)
o EX: A, w/o intent to kill, hit the back of the
head of B, causing B to fall down and hit
his head in the asphalt pavement,
resulting to head injury and later on
death. A is still liable for B’s death, even
tho he had no intent to kill B.
WRONG DONE MUST BE THE DIRECT, NATURAL,
AND LOGICAL CONSEQUENCE OF THE FELONIOUS
ACT
1. The victim who was threatened or chased by the
accused with a knife, jumped into the water and
the strong current caused him to sink down and
he died of drowning.
2. The victim removed the drainage of the wound,
which resulted in the development of its infection,
it appearing the wound caused by the accused
produced extreme pain and restlessness which
made the victim remove it. (People v Quianzon)
3. The victim was suffering from internal malady.
a. Blow was efficient to cause death
EX: A was suffering from tuberculosis and
B gave blows on A’s certain body parts,
bruising his internal organs and producing
internal haemorrhage, resulting to A’s death.
B is liable for homicide.
b. Blow accelerated death. – (dito malapit
na talaga mamatay ‘yung victim.)
EX: A was suffering from internal malady. B
gave fist blows on A’s certain body parts,
producing inflammation of the spleen, and
petronitis, and causing death. B was liable for
homicide, because by his fist blows, he
produced the cause of acceleration of the
death of A.
c. Blow was proximate cause of death.
EX: A was suffering from heart disease. B
stabbed A with a knife, but as the blade hit a
bone, it did not penetrate the thoracic cavity,
but it produced a shock, resulting to A’s
death. B is liable for homicide because the
stabbing was the proximate cause of the A’s
death.
4. The victim refused to submit to surgical
operation. He is not obliged to submit to a
surgical operation to relieve the accused from the
natural and ordinary result of his crime.
5. The resulting injury was aggravated by infection.
a. The accused is liable for all the
consequences of his acts, and the
infection of a wound he has caused is
one of the consequences for which he is
answerable.
b. But the infection should not be due to
malicious act of the offended party.
PROXIMATE CAUSE
 That cause, which, in natural and continuous
sequence, unbroken by any efficient intervening
cause, produces the injury, and without which the
result would not have occurred.
IMPOSSIBLE CRIMES (Art. 4, Par. 2.)
 PENALTY: Arresto mayor, fine of PhP 200-500
(Art. 59, RPC.)
 REQUISITES:
o The act performed would be an offense
against persons or property
o The act was done with evil intent
o The act’s accomplishment is inherently
impossible, or that the means employed
is either inadequate or ineffectual
o The act performed should NOT constitute
a violation of another provision of th RPC.
  EX: A fired at B, B was lying on the bed.
o If A KNOWS B is dead, it is NOT an
impossible crime. There was no evil
intent on A’s part, bec he knew he could
not anymore cause injury to B.
o If A DOES NOT KNOW B is dead, the
crime committed was an IMPOSSIBLE
CRIME, because there was physical and
legal impossibility.

ART. 5. DUTY OF THE COURT IN CONNECTION WITH

ACTS WHICH SHOULD BE REPRESSED BUT WHICH
ARE NOT COVERED BY THE LAW, AND IN CASE 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 to the imposition of a clearly excessive
penalty,
Taking into consideration the degree of malice
And the injury caused by the offense.