CONSTITUTIONAL LIMITATIONS OF THE CONGRESS IN ENACTING PENAL LAWS

(Source: Reyes, RPC Book 1)

Power to define and 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. States, as a part of their police power, have a large
measure of discretion in creating and defining criminal offenses. (People vs. Santiago, 43
Phil. 120, 124)

The right of prosecution and punishment for a crime is one of the attributes that by a
natural law belongs to the sovereign power instinctively charged by the common will of
the members of society to look after, guard and defend the interests of the community,
the individual and social rights and the liberties of every citizen and the guaranty of the
exercise of his rights. (U.S. vs. Pablo, 35 Phil. 94, 100)

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 of law.
(Art. III, Sec.14 (1))

The first limitation prohibits the passage of retroactive laws which are prejudicial to the
accused.

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 which when done w a s 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
amnesty. (In re: Kay Villegas Kami, Inc., 35 SCRA 429, 431)
 Congress is also prohibited from passing an act which would inflict punishment without
judicial trial, for that would constitute a bill of attainder.

A bill of attainder is a legislative act which inflicts punishment without trial. Its
essence is the substitution of a legislative act for a judicial determination of guilt. (People vs.
Ferrer, 48 SCRA 382, 395)

Example: Congress passes a law which authorizes the arrest and imprisonment of
communists without the benefit of a judicial trial.

To give a law retroactive application to the prejudice of the

accused is to make it an ex post facto law

The penalty of prision mayor medium, or eight years and one day to ten years,
imposed by Presidential Decree No. 818, applies only to swindling by means of issuing
bouncing checks committed on or after October 22, 1985. That increased penalty does
not apply to estafa committed on October 16, 1974 because it would make the decree
an ex post facto law. Its retroactive application is prohibited by Articles 21 and 22 of the
Revised Penal Code and Section 12, Article IV (now Sec. 22, Art. III Of the 1987
Constitution). (People vs. Villaraza, 81 SCRA 95, 97)

The second limitation requires that criminal laws must be of general application
and must clearly define the acts and omissions punished as crimes.

Constitutional rights of the accused

Article III, Bill of Rights, of the 1987 Constitution provides for the following rights:

1. All persons shall have the right to a speedy disposition of their cases before all
judicial, quasi-judicial, or administrative bodies. (Sec. 16)

2. No person shall be held to answer for a criminal offense without due process of law.
(Sec.14 (1)

3. All persons, except those charged with offenses punishable by when evidence of guilt
is strong, shall, before conviction, be bailable by sufficient sureties, or be released on
recognizance as may be provided by law. The right to bail shall not be impaired even
when the privilege of the writ of habeas corpus is suspended.

Excessive bail shall not be required. (Sec. 13)

4. In all criminal prosecutions, the accused shall be presumed innocent until the
contrary is proved, and shall enjoy the right to be heard by himself and counsel, to 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, and to have compulsory
process to secure the attendance of witnesses and the production of evidence in his
behalf. However, after arraignment, trial may proceed notwithstanding the absence of
the accused provided that he has been duly notified and his failure to appear is
unjustifiable. Sec.14(2)

5. No person shall be compelled to be a witness against himself. (Sec. 17)

Any person under investigation for the commission of an offense shall have the
right to be informed of his right to remain silent and to have competent and independent
counsel preferably of his own choice.

If the person cannot afford the services of counsel, he must be provided with
one.

These rights cannot be waived except in writing and in the presence of counsel.
Sec.12(1)

No torture, violence, force, threat, intimidation, or any other means which vitiate
the free will shall be used against him. Secret detention places, solitary,
incommunicado, or other similar forms of detention are prohibited. (Sec. 12(2)

Any confession or admission obtained in violation of this or Section hereof shall

be inadmissible in evidence against him. Sec. 12(3)

6. Excessive fines shall not be imposed, nor cruel, degrading nor inhuman punishment
inflicted. (Sec.19-1)

7. No person shall be twice put in jeopardy of punishment for the same offense. If an act
is punished by a law and an ordinance, conviction or acquittal under either shall
constitute a bar to another prosecution for the same act. (Sec. 21)

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. (Sec. 11)

Statutory rights of the accused

Section 1, Rule 115, of the Revised Rules on Criminal Procedure provides that in all
criminal prosecutions, the accused shall be entitled:

1. To be presumed innocent until the contrary is proved beyond reasonable doubt.

2. To be informed of the nature and cause of the accusation against him.
3. To be present and defend in person and by counsel at every
stage of the proceedings, from arraignment to promulgation of the judgment.
4. To testify as a witness in his own behalf but subject to cross-examination on matters
covered by direct examination. His silence shall not in any manner prejudice him.
5. To be exempt from being compelled to be a witness against himself.
6. To confront and cross-examine the witnesses against him at the trial.
7. To have compulsory process issued to secure the attendance of w it n e s s e s and
production of other evidence in his behalf.
8. To have a speedy, impartial and public trial.
9. To appeal in all cases allowed and in the manner prescribed by law.

Rights of the accused which may be waived and rights which

may not be waived

A right which may be waived is the right of the accused to confrontation and
cross-examination. A right which may not be waived is the right of the accused to be
informed of the nature and cause of the accusation against him.

The reason or principle underlying the difference between rights which may be
waived and rights which may not be waived is that those rights which may be waived
are personal, while those rights which may not be waived involve public interest which
may be affected. (2 Moran, Rules of Court, 1952 Edition, 748)