(CAPTION)

MOTION TO QUASH

COME NOW defendants, by counsel and unto this Honorable Court, most
respectfully move to quash the information filed against the defendants on the
ground of lack of jurisdiction over the subject matter.

ARGUMENTS

Defendants are indicted for committing the crime of "Unjust Vexation" that is
punished under the Article 287, Paragraph 2 of the Revised Penal Code; Said
provision states that:
"Any other coercions or unjust vexations shall be punished by arresto menor or a
fine ranging from 5 pesos to 200 pesos, or both."(emphasis ours)

Defendants, however, most respectfully submit that this Honorable Court lacks
jurisdiction over the subject matter of the offense for the reason that article 287,
paragraph 2 of the revised penal code that punishes "unjust vexations" cannot be
a basis of any criminal prosecution for being NULL AND VOID AND patently
unconstitutional on its face because of the FOLLOWING reasons:

a)Said penal provision condemns no specific or definite act or omission thus

failing to define any crime or felony;
b)Said penal provision is so indefinite, vague and overbroad as not to enable it to
be known what ACT is forbidden;

c)Such vagueness and overbreadth result to violation of the due process clause
and the right to be informed of the nature of the offense charged;

d) such vagueness and overbreadth likewise amount to an invalid delegation by

Congress of legislative power to the courts to determine what acts should be held
to be criminal and punishable.

e) a criminal or penal legislation must clearly define or specify the particular act or
acts punished

It is a well-established doctrine that a criminal or penal legislation must clearly

define or specify the particular acts or omissions punished. As early as 1916, in
the case of "United States vs. Luling, 34 Phil. 725, our Honorable Supreme Court
had the occasion to hold that:

"In some of the States, as well as in England, there exist what are known as
common law offenses. In the Philippine Islands no act is a crime unless it is made
so by statute. The state having the right to declare what acts are criminal, within
certain well defined limitations, has a right to specify what act or acts shall
constitute a crime, as well as what act or acts shall constitute a crime, as well as
what proof shall constitute prima facie evidence of guilt, and then to put upon the
defendant the burden of showing that such act or acts are innocent and are not
committed with any criminal intent or intention."(emphasis and underscoring
ours, cited in the fairly recent case of Dizon-Pamintuan v. People of the
Philippines, G.R. No. 111426, July 11, 1994) (emphasis and underscoring ours).
Two years later, this was followed by a scholarly exposition by Justice Johnson in
the case of In re: R. MCCULLOCH DICK, 38 Phil. 41, April 16, 1918, where he stated
that:

"x x x In the Philippine Islands no act is a crime unless it is made so by law. The
law must specify the particular act or acts constituting the crime. If that were not
so, the inhabitants could not know when they would be liable to be arrested, tried
and punished. Otherwise the mandatory provisions of the law, that all criminal
laws shall be prescribed, would prove to be a pitfall and a snare. The inhabitants
of the Philippine Islands, whether citizens, denizens or friendly aliens, have a right
to know, in advance of arrest, trial and punishment, the particular acts for which
they may be so tried. They cannot be arrested and tried, and then be informed for
the first time that their acts have been subsequently made a crime, and be
punished therefor. x x x"(emphasis and underscoring ours).

Justice (later Chief Justice) Fernando in his concurring opinion in the case of
PEOPLE v. CABURAL, G.R. No. L-34105, February 4, 1983, also made a similar
observation, stating that:

"The maxim Nullum crimen nulla poena sine lege has its roots in history. It is in
accordance with both centuries of civil law and common law tradition. Moreover,
it is an indispensable corollary to a regime of liberty enshrined in our Constitution.
It is of the essence then that while anti-social acts should be penalized, there
must be a clear definition of the punishable offense as well as the penalty that
may be imposed - a penalty, to repeat, that can be fixed by the legislative body,
and the legislative body alone. So constitutionalism mandates, with its stress on
jurisdictio rather than guvernaculum. The judiciary as the dispenser of justice
through law must be aware of the limitation on its own power." (emphasis and
underscoring ours).
The rationale of said doctrine that a criminal or penal legislation must clearly
define or specify the particular act or acts punished is ably explained by the
United Stated Supreme Court in the case of LANZETTA v. STATE OF NEW JERSEY,
306 U.S. 451, where it held that:

"x x x It is the statute, not the accusation under it, that prescribes the rule to
govern conduct and warns against transgression. x x x No one may be required at
peril of life, liberty or property to speculate as to the meaning of penal statutes.
All are entitled to be informed as to what the State commands or forbids. x x x"
(emphasis and underscoring ours).

Article 287, par. 2 of the Revised Penal Code condemns no SPECIFIC act or
omission!Therefore, it does not define any crime or felony.

Paragraph 2 of Article 287 of the Revised Penal Code does not define, much less
specify, the acts constituting or deemed included in the term "unjust vexations"
resulting to making the said provision a sort of a "catch-all" provision patently
offensive to the due process clause;

The right to define and punish crimes is an attribute of sovereignty. Each State has
the authority, under its police power, to define and punish crimes and to lay
down the rules of criminal procedure. Pursuant to this power to define and
punish crimes, the State may not punish an act as a crime unless it is first defined
in a criminal statute so that the people will be forewarned as to what act is
punishable or not. The people cannot be left guessing at the meaning of criminal
statutes;

Moreover, Article 3 of the Revised Penal Code defines felonies (delitos) as "acts or
omissions" punishable by law. Article 287, Par. 2 of the Revised Penal Code
condemns no specific act or omission! Therefore, it does not define any crime or
felony!

Philippine Jurisprudence is replete with examples that would readily show that
Art. 287, Par. 2 of the Revised Penal Code has not been used to prosecute a well-
defined or specific criminal act.Instead, it was used as a "catch-all" provision to
prosecute acts which are not expressly made criminal by any other provision of
the Revised Penal Code. This is anathema to criminal due process that requires
notice of what specific act or omission is punished by law;

An examination of the annals of our jurisprudence would likewise show that Art.
287, par. 2 of the Revised Penal Code has not been used to punish a specific act:

a)In People v. Reyes, 60 Phil. 369, August 23, 1934, accused were found guilty of
unjust vexation by their act of disturbing or interrupting a ceremony of a religious
character;

b)In Lino v. Fugoso, 77 Phil. 983, January 30, 1947, it was used to prosecute the
accused of unjust vexation committed by stopping the jeep driven by the
complainant in a threatening attitude and without any just cause therefor and
telling him to stop driving for the City of Manila while the strike of city laborers
was still going on;

c)In People v. Reyes, 98 Phil. 646, March 23, 1956, it was held that the act of
seizing, taking and holding possession of passenger jeep belonging to
complainant, without the knowledge and consent of the latter, for the purpose of
answering for the debt of the said owner, constitutes unjust vexation;
d)In People v. Yanga, 100 Phil. 385, November 28, 1956, accused was convicted of
unjust vexation for the act of compelling the complainant to do something against
his will, by holding the latter around the neck and dragging him from the latter's
residence to the police outpost;

e)In People v. Abuy, G.R. No. L-17616, May 30, 1962, the accused was prosecuted
for unjust vexation for the act of embracing and taking hold of the wrist of the
complainant;

f)In People v. Carreon, G.R. No. L-17920, May 30, 1962, accused was convicted of
unjust vexation by the act of threatening the complainant by holding and pushing
his shoulder and uttering to the latter in a threatening tone the following words:
"What inspection did you make to my sister in the mountain when you are not
connected with the Bureau of Education?"

g)In People v. Gilo, G.R. No. L-18202, April 30, 1964, the Court held that the
absence of an allegation of "lewd design" in a complaint for acts of lasciviousness
converts the act into unjust vexation;

h)In Andal v. People of the Philippines, G.R. No. L-29814, March 28, 1969, accused
were found guilty of unjust vexation under an information charging them with the
offense of offending religious feelings, by the performance of acts notoriously
offensive to the feelings of the faithful;

i)In People v. Maravilla, G.R. No. L-47646, September 19, 1988, a accused was
convicted of unjust vexation for the act of grabbing the left breast of the
complainant against her will; and
j) Recently in Kwan v. Court of Appeals, G.R. No. 113006, November 23, 2000, the
act of abruptly cutting off the electric, water pipe and telephone lines of a
business establishment causing interruption of its business operations during
peak hours was held as unjust vexation;

From the above-cited cases, it clearly appears that Art. 287, par. 2 of the Revised
Penal Code does not punish a specific act.Instead, any and all kind of acts that are
not specifically covered by any other provision of the Revised Penal Code and
which may cause annoyance, irritation, vexation, torment, distress or disturbance
to the mind of the person to whom it is directed may be punished as unjust
vexation; art. 287, par. 2 of the revised penal code suffers from A CONGENITAL
DEFECT OF vagueness and must be stricken down.

The term "unjust vexation" is a highly imprecise and relative term that has no
common law meaning or settled definition by prior judicial or administrative
precedents; Thus, for its vagueness and overbreadth, said provision violates due
process in that it does not give fair warning or sufficient notice of what it seeks to
penalize;

This kind of challenge to the constitutionality of a penal statute on ground of

vagueness and overbreadth is not entirely novel in our jurisdiction. In an en banc
decision in the case of GONZALES v. COMELEC, G.R. No. L-27833, April 18, 1969,
re: Constitutionality of Republic Act No. 4880, our Honorable Supreme Court had
the occasion to rule that the terms "election campaign" and "partisan political
activity" which are punished in said R.A. 4880 would have been void for their
vagueness were it not for the express enumeration of the acts deemed included
in the said terms. The Supreme Court held:

"The limitation on the period of "election campaign"or "partisan political activity"

calls for a more intensive scrutiny. According to Republic Act No. 4880: "It is
unlawful for any person whether or not a voter or candidate, or for any group or
association of persons, whether or not a political party or political committee, to
engage in an election campaign or partisan political activity except during the
period of one hundred twenty days immediately preceding an election involving a
public office voted for at large and ninety days immediately preceding an election
for any other elective public office. The term 'candidate' refers to any person
aspiring for or seeking an elective public office regardless of whether or not said
person has already filed his certificate of candidacy or has been nominated by any
political party as its candidate. The term 'election campaign' of 'partisan political
activity' refers to acts designed to have a candidate elected or not or promote the
candidacy of a person or persons to a public office . . ."

"If that is all there is to that provision, it suffers from the fatal constitutional
infirmity of vagueness and may be stricken down. x x x x x x x x x x x x.

"There are still constitutional questions of a serious character then to be faced.

The practices which the act identifies with "election campaign" or"partisan
political activity" must be such that they are free from the taint of being violative
of free speech, free press, freedom of assembly, and freedom of association.
What removes the sting from constitutional objection of vagueness is the
enumeration of the acts deemed included in the terms "election campaign" or
"partisan political activity." (emphasis and underscoring ours).

Article 287, par. 2 of the Revised Penal Code punishes "unjust vexations" and that
is all there is to it! As such, applying the incontestable logic of the Supreme Court
in said case of GONZALES v. COMELEC would lead us to the inescapable
conclusion that said penal provision suffers from the fatal constitutional infirmity
of vagueness and must be stricken down;

In the case of Connally v. General Construction Co., 269 U.S. 385, cited by our own
Supreme Court en banc in the case of Ermita-Malate Hotel and Motel Operators
Assn., Inc. v. City Mayor of Manila, G.R. No. L-24693, July 31, 1967), the United
States Supreme Court ruled:

"That the terms of a penal statute creating a new offense must be sufficiently
explicit to inform those who are subject to it what conduct on their part will
render them liable to its penalties is a well-recognized requirement, consonant
alike with ordinary notions of fair play and the settled rules of law; and a statute
which either forbids or requires the doing of an act in terms so vague that men of
common intelligence must necessarily guess at its meaning and differ as to its
application violates the first essential of due process of law." (emphasis and
underscoring ours).

In fact, it is worst in the case of the 2nd Paragraph of Article 287 of the Revised
Penal Code because it punishes "unjust vexations" without even defining or
enumerating the acts constituting the said crime thus leaving men of common
intelligence necessarily guessing at its meaning and differing as to its application
in complete disregard of constitutional due process;

Our Supreme Court in the case of U.S. v. NAG TANG HO, 43 Phil. 1, held that one
cannot be convicted of a violation of a law that fails to set up an ascertainable
standard of guilt. Said ruling cites the landmark case of U.S. v. L. COHEN GROCERY
CO., 255 U.S. 81, where the United States Supreme Court in striking down Section
4 of the Federal Food Control Act of August 10, 1917, as amended, as
unconstitutional, stated that:

"The sole remaining inquiry, therefore, is the certainty or uncertainty of the text
in question, that is, whether the words 'that it is hereby made unlawful for any
person willfully ... to make any unjust or unreasonable rate or charge in handling
or dealing in or with any necessaries,' constituted a fixing by Congress of an
ascertainable standard of guilt and are adequate to inform persons accused of
violation thereof of the nature and cause of the accusation against them. That
they are not, we are of opinion, so clearly results from their mere statement as to
render elaboration on the subject wholly unnecessary. Observe that the section
forbids no specific or definite act. It confines the subject matter of the
investigation which it authorizes to no element essentially inhering in the
transaction as to which it provides. It leaves open, therefore, the widest
conceivable inquiry, the scope of which no one can foresee and the result of
which no one can foreshadow or adequately guard against. In fact, we see no
reason to doubt the soundness of the observation of the court below in its
opinion to the effect that, to attempt to enforce the section would be the exact
equivalent of an effort to carry out a statute which in terms merely penalized and
punished all acts detrimental to the public interest when unjust and unreasonable
in the estimation of the court x x x (emphasis and underscoring ours).

Recently, in COATES v. CITY OF CINCINNATI, 402 U.S. 611, the United States
Supreme Court passed upon the issue of constitutionality of a Cincinnati, Ohio,
ordinance that provides that:

It shall be unlawful for three or more persons to assemble, except at a public

meeting of citizens, on any of the sidewalks, street corners, vacant lots, or mouths
of alleys, and there conduct themselves in a manner annoying to persons passing
by, or occupants of adjacent buildings. Whoever violates any of the provisions of
this section shall be fined not exceeding fifty dollars ($50.00), or be imprisoned
not less than one (1) nor more than thirty (30) days or both. Section 901-L6, Code
of Ordinances of the City of Cincinnati. (emphasis and underscoring ours).

In hammering down the constitutionality of the above-cited Cincinnati, Ohio

ordinance in its landmark decision, the United States Supreme Court held that:

Conduct that annoys some people does not annoy others. Thus, the ordinance is
vague, not in the sense that it requires a person to conform his conduct to an
imprecise but comprehensible normative standard, but rather in the sense that
no standard of conduct is specified at all. As a result, men of common intelligence
must necessarily guess at its meaning. Connally v. General Construction Co., 269
U.S. 385, 391.

It is said that the ordinance is broad enough to encompass many types of conduct
clearly within the city's constitutional power to prohibit. And so, indeed, it is. The
city is free to prevent people from blocking sidewalks, obstructing traffic, littering
streets, committing assaults, or engaging in countless other forms of antisocial
conduct. It can do so through the enactment and enforcement of ordinances
directed with reasonable specificity toward the conduct to be prohibited. It
cannot constitutionally do so through the enactment and enforcement of an
ordinance whose violation may entirely depend upon whether or not a policeman
is annoyed.(emphasis and underscoring ours).

Same things can be said of Art. 287, par. 2 of the Revised Penal Code that
punishes unjust vexations. As previously shown, the term"unjust vexations" is
broad enough to encompass many types of acts or conduct. But while these acts
of types of conduct are within the State's police power to prohibit and punish, it
cannot however constitutionally do so when its violation may entirely depend
upon whether or not another is vexed or annoyed by said act or conduct and
whether or not said act or conduct is unjust is the estimation of the court;

ARTICLE 287, PAR. 2 OF THE REVISED PENAL CODE IS AN INVALID DELEGATION OF

THE LEGISLATIVE POWER to DEFINE what acts should be held to be criminal and
punishable.

The failure of Art. 287, par. 2 of the Revised Penal Code to define or specify the
act or omission that it punishes likewise amounts to an invalid delegation by
Congress of legislative power to the courts to determine what acts should be held
to be criminal and punishable. Potestas delegata non delegare potest. What has
been delegated cannot be delegated. This doctrine is based on the ethical
principle that such as delegated power constitutes not only a right but a duty to
be performed by the delegate through the instrumentality of his own judgment
and not through the intervening mind of another (United States v. Barrias, 11 Phil.
327, 330);

Congress alone has power to define crimes. This power as an attribute of

sovereignty may not be delegated to the courts. When a criminal legislation
leaves the halls of Congress, it must be complete in itself in that it must clearly
define and specify the acts or omissions deemed punishable; and when it reaches
the courts, there must be nothing left for the latter to do, except to determine
whether person or persons indicted are guilty of committing the said acts or
omissions defined and made punishable by Congress. Otherwise, borrowing the
immortal words of Justice Isagani Cruz in Ynot v. Intermediate Appellate Court
(148 SCRA 659), the law becomes a "roving commission," a wide and sweeping
authority that is not "canalized within banks that keep it from overflowing," in
short a clearly profligate and therefore invalid delegation of legislative powers;

Art. 287, par. 2 of the Revised Penal Code fails to set an immutable and
ascertainable standard of guilt, but leaves such standard to the variant and
changing views and notions of different judges or courts which are called upon to
enforce it. Instead of defining the specific acts or omissions punished, it leaves to
the courts the power to determine what acts or types of conduct constitute
"unjust vexation". Moreover, liability under the said provision is also made
dependent upon the varying degrees of sensibility and emotions of people. It
depends upon whether or not another is vexed or annoyed by said act or conduct.
As previously intimated, one cannot be convicted of a violation of a law that fails
to set up an immutable and an ascertainable standard of guilt.

Conclusion
In view of all the foregoing, Defendants submit that Art. 287, par. 2 of the Revised
Penal Code that punishes "unjust vexations" is unconstitutional on its face for its
fatal failure to forbid a specific or definite act or conduct resulting to its
congenital vagueness and overbreadth which are anathema to constitutional due
process and the right to be informed of the nature of the offense charged;

Moreover, by leaving it to the judiciary to determine the "justness" or

"unjustness" of an act or conduct that is not clearly defined or specified by law
constitutes a fixing by Congress of an unascertainable standard of guilt and
therefore an invalid delegation, if not an abdication, of legislative power;

Therefore, the conclusion is inevitable that Art. 287, par. 2 of the Revised Penal
Code, being facially unconstitutional, cannot be a basis of any criminal
prosecution. As such, there is no offense to speak of and consequently, this
Honorable Court cannot acquire any jurisdiction whatsoever to try the defendants
of the charge of "unjust vexation".

PRAYER

WHEREFORE, it view of all the foregoing, it is most respectfully prayed that the
information be quashed, and defendants discharged.

Other relief just and equitable are likewise prayed for.

_____________, Philippines, __Date__.

(COUNSEL)
(NOTICE OF HEARING)

(EXPLANATION)

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