THE PEOPLE OF THE PHILIPPINE ISLANDS V.

GREGORIO PERFECTO

G. R. No. L – 18463, October 4, 1922

Facts:

On September 7, 1920, Gregorio Perfecto published an editorial for the newspaper La Nacion, about the
loss of documents in the Senate. The said documents were records of witness testimonies regarding the
investigation of Oil Companies. The Philippine Senate deemed the editorial of Mr. Perfecto to be
libellous and in direct violation of Article 256 of the Spanish Penal Code, which states,  "Any person who,
by word, deed, or writing, shall defame, abuse, or insult any Minister of the Crown or other person in
authority, while engaged in the performance of official duties, or by reason of such performance,
provided that the offensive minister or person, or the offensive writing be not addressed to him, shall
suffer the penalty of arresto mayor,". Defendant argued whether Article 256 is still in force with the
new American occupation. Defendant was found guilty in the municipal court and also in the Court of
First Instance of Manila.

Issue:

Whether or not Mr. Gregorio Perfecto violated Article 256 of the Spanish Penal Code

Held:

No. It is a general principle that whenever there is acquisition of new territory, the previous political
relations are totally abrogated, although some laws from the Spanish Penal Code are still used in force, it
was only done so because of convenience. However, with the new American occupation all laws that are
inconsistent with the democratic nature of the new government are displaced without the need for any
declaration.

Article 256 is a law that is monarchical in nature, aiming to protect ministers of the crown and persons
of authority as representatives of the king of Spain, upholding said officials as higher from the general
population and protecting them from contemptuous or dissatisfied statement from the public. It is
completely against the nature and the spirit of the American System of Government which states that
every man is a sovereign, a ruler and a freeman, and has equal right with every other man.