1. people vs.

perfecto
Title : THE PEOPLE OF THE PHILIPPINE ISLANDS, plaintiff
and appellee, vs. GREGORIO PERFECTO, defendant and
appellant.
Ponente: Malcolm J.
Actions: APPEAL from a judgment of the Court of First Instance of
Manila.
Facts: The issue started when the Secretary of the Philippine Senate, Fernando
Guerrero, discovered that the documents regarding the testimony of the witnesses in an
investigation of oil companies had disappeared from his office. Then, the day following
the convening of Senate, the newspaper La Nacion – edited by herein respondent
Gregorio Perfecto – published an article against the Philippine Senate. Here, Mr.
Perfecto was alleged to have violated Article 256 of the Spanish Penal Code – provision
that punishes those who insults the Ministers of the Crown
Issues: Whether or not Article 256 of the Spanish Penal Code (SPC) is still in force and
can be applied in the case at bar?
Ruling: NO. The Spanish Penal Code is not enforceable and applicable in the case at
bar. Respondent is acquitted.
Ratio Decidendi: The Court stated that during the Spanish Government, Article 256 of
the SPC was enacted to protect Spanish officials as representatives of the King.
However, the Court explains that in the present case, we no longer have Kings nor its
representatives for the provision to protect. Also, with the change of sovereignty over
the Philippines from Spanish to American, it means that the invoked provision of the
SPC had been automatically abrogated., The Court highlighted that ‘it is a general
principle of the public law that on acquisition of territory, the previous political relations
of the ceded region are totally abrogated.’ Therefore, Article 256 of the SPC is
considered no longer in force and cannot be applied to the present case.