Article 68

 ARTICLE 68 – PENALTY FOR MINORS UNDER 18

(repealed by RA 9344)
 Minor under 18 who acted with discernment = penalty two degrees lower

Article 69

 ARTICLE 69 – PENALTY FOR INCOMPLETE JUSTIFYING OR EXEMPTING CIRCUMSTANCES

- lowered by 1 or 2 degrees
 Majority of such conditions must be present
 In self-defense, defense of a relative, defense of a stranger
- Unlawful Aggression is indispensable

Article 70

 ARTICLE 70 – SUCCESSIVE SERVICE OF SENTENCE

 Simultaneous Service – if the nature of the penalties will so permit, i.e. Reclusion temporal and Perpetual Absolute
Disqualification (refer to Reyes book for a complete list of penalties that ca be served simultaneously)
 Successive Service – if cannot be served simultaneously (such as two jail sentences) shall follow the scale provided by Article 70
based in the order according to severity
 3-fold rule – the maximum duration of the convict’s sentence shall not be more than 3-fold the length of the time corresponding
to the most severe of the penalties imposed
 only applies when the convict has to serve at least 4 sentences
 In no case shall the sum total of penalties exceed 40 years
 In the scale, Arresto menor comes before destierro because complete deprivation of liberty or imprisonment in arresto menor is
more severe than destierro

 Supposing, you are a judge, can you impose the sentence of 500 counts of malversation, which is each punishable by 15 yrs. of
imprisonment, without violating Article 70? YES, because the 3-fold rule does not refer to the imposition of sentence but refers
to the service to the penalty; the courts can sentence no matter what and no matter how much
 The 3-fold rule is the concern of the Director of Prisons, NOT of the courts
 If the sum total of all the penalties does not exceed the most severe multiplied by 3, the 3-fold rule does not apply
 Duration of convicts’ sentence refers to several penalties for different offenses not yet served out = has to serve continuous
imprisonment

Article 71-77

 ARTICLE 71 – GRADUATED SCALES

 Penalties are classified between personal penalties (imprisonment) and political rights (suspension, fine, etc)
 Arresto mayor is followed by destierro

 ARTICLES 72-77 (reading matter)

 Article 73 – Accessory penalties are deemed imposed
 Subsidiary imprisonment is NOT an accessory penalty

 INDETERMINATE SENTENCE LAW (ACT 4103 AMENDED BY ACT 4225)

- mandatory in nature; whether the courts like it or not, they have to apply the same except for those mentioned in Sec. 2 who are
disqualified

 Purpose/Objectives of the ISLAW

1. to uplift and redeem valuable human materials
2. promote economic usefulness
3. prevent unnecessary and excessive deprivation of liberty
 The ISLAW was enacted to benefit the accused by allowing the convict not to serve the full sentence
 These objectives are attained with the application of the ISLAW
 Court fixes a Maximum term and a Minimum term
 After serving the Minimum term, the convict shall be entitled to parole upon evaluation of the Board of Pardons and Parole
 The ‘release’ shall be evaluated by the Court whether the convict is:
- fitted by training for release
- reasonable probability not to commit another crime or violate the law
- compatible with the welfare of society
(take note of this; this was given by Prof. Amurao)
 As applied in special penal laws
- the Maximum term should not be more than what is prescribed
- the Minimum term should not be less than what is prescribed
 Example: 5 yrs and 1 day to 15 yrs
- the Minimum may be anywhere from 5 yrs to 14 yrs, but not less than 5 yrs
- the Maximum may be anywhere from 6 - 15 yrs. but not more than 15yrs.
 As applied in the Revised Penal Code
- the Maximum term should be imposed under the rules of the RPC; penalty prescribed by law after applying the legal effects of
mitigating or aggravating circumstances; only the maximum is affected by the attending circumstances
- the Minimum term should be within the range of the penalty next lower to that prescribed by the RPC; the penalty prescribed by
law, lower it immediately by one degree, ignore all the mitigating or aggravating circumstances

Example:
 Supposing, accidentally you met your neighbor along the road, he challenged you to a fight and you accepted the challenge, there
was a physical fight, then you inflicted a mortal wound that caused his death in the hospital, you were charged with homicide,
because there were no qualifying circumstances, and since there was no mitigating and aggravating you should be sentenced to
a medium period of reclusion temporal (for homicide)
- To get Minimum term, immediately get the penalty next to Reclusion temporal, lower by 1 degree = Prision mayor – anywhere
within Prision mayor, the court can decide what period, regardless of attending circumstances
- The Maximum term, considering the absence of attending circumstances, is Reclusion Temporal medium period
- The sentence now using the ISLAW is Prision mayor in any period as the Minimum term, up to Reclusion temporal medium period
as the Maximum term

 If the convict reaches the Minimum term, he shall eligible for parole; terms and conditions can be imposed by the BPP
 Note from Prof. Amurao: It pays to be in good terms with the judge and his wife or his number 2 so you can get a low Minimum
term if not the lowest

 Surveillance Period during Parole (SP)

1. If there is no violation during the during the special period, the court will issue an order for final discharge
2. Legal effect of a violation of law or rules:
- release may be revoked
- prosecuted anew
- prolonged change in the terms and conditions of the parole
- made to serve out the remaining unexpired portion of the sentence
 During parole, the convict is as free as any normal person except for the terms and condition that have to be observed

 ISLAW is inapplicable with the following:

1. persons convicted of death or life imprisonment
- in terms of death, this refers to the penalty actually imposed in the conviction by the courts, not the penalty prescribed by the law
- in terms of life imprisonment, what if Reclusion perpetua is imposed, can the ISLAW still be applied? The SC says NO, it’s not
applicable
2. those convicted of treason, proposal or conspiracy to commit treason
3. those convicted of misprision of treason, rebellion, sedition, espionage
4. convicted of piracy
5. habitual delinquents
6. those who escaped from confinement
7. those who violated the terms of conditional pardon by the President
8. maximum term of imprisonment less than a year
9. those convicted by destierro or suspension
- destierro is a conviction imposed by courts

 PROBATION LAW (PD 968)

 Probation – a disposition under which a defendant after conviction and sentence, is released subject to the conditions imposed by
the court and to the supervision of the probation officer

 Objectives/Purpose
1. Promote correction and rehabilitation
2. Opportunity for reformation
3. Prevent commission of offenses

 Criteria for granting

- character - environment - institution/community
- antecedents - mental and physical condition

 Criteria for denying; if the convict:

1. needs correctional treatment
2. has undue risk of committing another crime
3. probation will depreciate seriousness of offense

 Inapplicability of the Probation Law

1. a convict sentenced to more than 6 years
2. convicted of subversion other crimes of national security or public order
3. a recidivist
4. previously probationed
5. already serving sentence
 There is first, a judgment of conviction imposed by the court

 Duration
- not exceeding 6 years and not disqualified
- the accused may file an application for probation with the court
- the court will order an investigation through the probation officer, all the aspects of the life of the convict
- probation officer submits findings and recommendation
- after submission, court may deny or approve recommendation and admit the accused to probation
- Court may impose duration based on: - rehabilitation
- reformation
- reintegration
 Duration of the Probation Period
1. sentence not more than 1 year = probation is less than 2 years
2. sentence more than 1 year = probation is less than 6 years
3. sentence is fine with subsidiary imprisonment = probation is twice the days of subsidiary imprisonment

 After the Probation Period

- the court can issue, upon recommendation by the probation officer, a certificate of final discharge; its effects are:
1. restored to one’s original position
2. liability for the fine is deemed extinguished

 When to apply for probation

- 15 days from promulgation, during the reglamentary period
- the convict can either appeal or apply for probation

 Supposing, convict filed a notice of appeal, later changed his mind, withdrew his appeal then filed an application for probation,
can he do that? NO, once you file for an appeal, you waive your right to file for an application for probation, and vice-versa if you
first file for an application then later on decide to withdraw it.
 Supposing, a judgment of conviction was made, thus not entitled to probation, so accused filed an appeal in the CA where his
sentence was lowered, qualifying him for probation, can he apply for probation now?
CA says – YES, there can’t be any waiver of right because he was not entitled to file an application for probation = there’s nothing
to waive
SC says – NO, because he already appealed, though with strong dissenting
opinions about it (The SC is supreme, but it is not always right)

 Beyond the 15-day reglamentary period, you can’t file an application for probation, except in RA 9344, a child in conflict with the
law can file an application for probation anytime

 ARTICLES 78-80 (reading matters)

- Article 79 – Suspension of Execution
- Article 80 (repealed by RA 9344) – involves the diversion and intervention programs for children in conflict with the law

 ARTICLES 81-85 – PROCEDURE AND GUIDELINES FOR THE EXECUTION OF DEATH PENALTY (reading matter)

 ARTICLE 86 – ADMINISTRATIVE MATTER ON PENITENTIARIES

(reading matter)

 ARTICLE 87 – DESTIERRO
- prohibition in a certain place or places designated in the conviction
- not permitted to enter the place or places nor within the radius specified not more than 250, but not less than 25 kilometers from
the place

 ARTICLE 88 – ARRESTO MENOR

- shall be served in municipal jails
- or for health reasons, can be allowed to stay home (house arrest)

 ARTICLE 89 – TOTAL EXTINCTION OF CRIMINAL LIABILITY

1. Death of a convict = extinguishes personal penalties but not pecuniary

if death comes before final judgment, even pecuniary liabilities are extinguished
2. Service of sentence
- crime is a debt incurred by the offender as a consequence; after service of the sentence, the debt is paid
3. Amnesty
- extinguishes the penalty and its effects; as if the crime was not committed
4. Absolute Pardon
- an act of grace by the Chief Executive; exempts the person from punishment only
5. Prescription of crime
- forfeiture or loss of the right of the State to prosecute
6. Prescription of penalty
- loss or forfeiture of right of the government to execute the final sentence
7. Marriage of offended woman (Article 344)
- private crimes (abduction, seduction, lascivious acts adultery, concubinage) cannot be prosecuted de officio
- public crimes (rape) can be prosecuted de officio (meaning initiated in Court by filing a complaint

 Marriage can extinguish either crimes

 ARTICLE 90 AND 91 – PRESCRIPTION OF CRIMES AND COMPUTATION

1. Death, Reclusion perpetua, Reclusion temporal = 20 years
2. Crimes punishable by other afflictive penalties = 15 years
3. Crimes punishable by correctional penalties = 10 years
4. Arresto mayor = 5 years
5. Crimes of libel, or other similar offenses = 1 year
6. Oral defamation/ Slander by deed = 6 months
7. Light felonies = 2 months

 The prescriptive period shall commence to run from the discovery of the crime and shall be interrupted only by filing a complaint
or information in court
 Commences to run again when such proceedings terminate without the accused being convicted or acquitted
 The prescriptive period shall not run when the offender is absent from the Philippines

 Supposing, in 1980 the accused commits a crime, then goes into hiding, he resurfaces 20 years later, then the government finds a
witness, can they institute a case? NO, but if the accused left for the US, YES he can be prosecuted still

 The mere filing of a complaint with the following does not interrupt the prescriptive period:
- Chief of Police - Office of the NBI
- Office of the Provincial Director of the PNP
because these do not constitute the court; they are not part of the judiciary, not part of the courts of justice

 But filing with: Office of the Public Prosecutor or Office of the Ombudsman, may interrupt the prescriptive period

 ARTICLE 92 AND 93 – PRESCRIPTION OF PENALTIES AND COMPUTATION

1. Death, Reclusion perpetua = 20 years
2. Crimes punishable by other afflictive penalties = 15 years
3. Crimes punishable by correctional penalties = 10 years
4. Arresto mayor = 5 years
5. Light felonies = 1 year

 The prescriptive period shall commence upon evasion of the service of sentence of the convict and shall be interrupted by the
following:
1. if offender gives himself up
2. if he is captured
3. goes to a foreign country with which we have no extradition treaty
4. commits another crime before expiration of the period of prescription

 Difference between Prescription of crimes & Prescription of penalties

PRESCRIPTION OF CRIME
- loss or forfeiture of the State to
prosecute
- period: includes libel, oral
defamation; difference in time for
light felonies
- starts counting upon discovery of the
commission of the crime
- mere absence from the Philippines
interrupts
- commission of another crime before
the expiration of the period does not
interrupt
PRESCRIPTION OF PENALTY
- loss or forfeiture of the State to
enforce judgment after a lapse of
time
- light felonies for 1 year
- starts counting upon the escape or
evasion of service of the sentence
- absence from the Philippines
interrupted only when he goes to a
foreign country without an
extradition treaty with us
- commission of another crime
before expiration of the period
interrupts the prescription

 ARTICLE 94 – PARTIAL EXTINCTION OF CRIMINAL LIABILITY

1. Conditional pardon
- must be delivered and accepted; contract bet. President and the convict
2. By commutation of the sentence
3. For good conduct allowances which culprit may earn
4. Full credit of service of preventive imprisonment
5. Release on Parole
6. Release under Probation
 ARTICLE 95 – OBLIGATIONS OF THOSE GRANTED CONDITIONAL PARDON
(reading matter)

 ARTICLE 96 – EFFECT OF COMMUTATION OF SENTENCE

(reading matter)

 ARTICLE 97 – ALLOWANCES FOR GOOD CONDUCT

1. first 2 years = deduction of 5 days for each month of good behavior
2. 3 - 5 years = deduction of 8 days for each month of good behavior
3. 6-10 years = deduction of 10 days for each month of good behavior
4. 11 & so on years = deduction of 15 days for each month of good behavior

 ARTICLE 98 – SPECIAL TIME ALLOWANCES

- it is a deduction of 1/5 of the period of the entire sentence: having evaded service during calamity or catastrophe (Art.158) gives
himself up to the authorities within 48 hours; otherwise, if captured 1/5 of the remaining sentence will added
 Supposing, there is a calamity, but you did not escape, will you be awarded the 1/5 deduction? NO, the law says you have to first
escape

 ARTICLE 99 – WHO GRANTS TIME ALLOWANCES (reading matter)

- The Director of Prisons