ART. 343.
CONSENTED ABDUCTION
Elements:
1. That the offended party must be a virgin.
2. That she must be over 12 and under 18
years of age.
3. That the taking away of the offended party
must be with her consent, after solicitation or
cajolery from the offender.
4. That the taking away of the offended party
must be with lewd designs.
Virginity
Not to be understood in so material a sense as to
exclude the idea of abduction of a virtuous woman of
good reputation
Even if the accused had sexual intercourse with the
girl before they eloped, there is still a case of
abduction with consent
When the offended party had carnal knowledge with
other men, the chaste character of the girl is open to
question
If virgin is under 12 yrs old, it is forcible abduction
Crime committed is forcible abduction, even if the girl
agrees to the elopement
Must the taking of the virgin have the character of
permanency?
No. The taking away of the girl in consented
abduction need not be with some character of
permanence
The crime exists where the offended girl was kept in
the house of the accused from 10:00 p.m. to 3:00
a.m., the latter with lewd designs. "No matter how
short is the taking away the crime exists."
Offended party need not be taken from her house
The abductor need not actually and personally have
taken the abducted female from her parent's home, or
induced her to abandon it. It is sufficient that he was
instrumental in her escape. The shock, the anxiety,
the shame, and all the concomitant evils suffered by
the family of the girl are not greater when the starting
point of the abduction is the home where she lives
than when it has its beginning somewhere else.
(People v. Moreno)
The offended girl, 15 years old, was on her way to her
aunt's house to spend a few days there. Through
cunning, and possibly by deceit and cajolery, the
accused succeeded in persuading the girl to go with
him to a place in order to enjoy her and satisfy his
carnal lust (People v. Ignacio; Hokage movez)
Consent of the minor to being taken away may be
due to honeyed promises of marriage by the
offender, when offender induces a minor to leave her
house and deflowers her, and immediately after which
she returns to her dwelling
When there was no solicitation or cajolery and no
deceit and the girl voluntarily went with the man,
there is no crime committed even if they had
sexual intercourse
The purpose of the law is not to punish the wrong
done to the girl, because she consents thereto, but to
prescribe punishment for the disgrace to her family
and the alarm caused therein by the disappearance of
the one who is, by her age and sex, susceptible to
cajolery and deceit
A, 15-year old girl, was induced to leave her home,
and later forcibly violated by the 4 accused, all are
guilty of consented abduction with rape
ART. 344- Prosecution of the crimes of adultery,
concubinage, seduction, abduction, rape, and
acts of lasciviousness
1. Adultery and concubinage must be
prosecuted upon complaint signed by the
offended spouse.
2. Seduction, abduction, rape or acts of
lasciviousness must be prosecuted upon
complaint signed by:
a. offended party,
b. her parents,
c. grandparents, or
d. guardians in the order in which they are
named above
The court motu proprio can dismiss the case for
failure of the aggrieved party to file the proper
complaint, though the accused never raised the
question on appeal, thereby showing the necessity of
strict compliance with the legal requirement even at
the cost of nullifying all the proceedings already had in
the lower court
Underlying principle or reason why crimes against
chastity cannot be prosecuted de oficio
Article was enacted "out of consideration for the
offended woman and her family who might prefer to
suffer the outrage in silence rather than go through
with the scandal of a public trial
In some instances, the virginity of the girl may be
questioned, which would involve the examination of
her past life and conduct of her family, which may
cause painful mortifications to the modesty and honor
of the girl and cause discredit to her family
Pursuant to R.A. No. 8353, the Anti-Rape Law of
1997, rape is now a crime against persons which
may be prosecuted de oficio
Prosecution of adultery and concubinage.
-shall not be prosecuted except upon a complaint
filed by the offended spouse. The offended party
cannot institute criminal prosecution without including
both the guilty parties, if they are both alive, nor, in
any case, if he shall have consented or pardoned the
offenders. (Sec. 5, Rule 110, Rules of Court; Art. 344,
R.P.C.)
Prosecution of the crime of prostitution
To call a married woman a prostitute is not merely to
proclaim her an adulteress, a violator of her maternal
vows; it is to charge her of having committed an
offense against public morals, or moral degeneracy
far exceeding that involved in the maintenance of
adulterous relations. It can be prosecuted de oficio
Only the offended spouse can file the complaint
Parent, grandparent, or any person in behalf of the
offended party, is not authorized by law to sign and
file the complaint for adultery or concubinage
Even if the offended spouse is underage, his or her
parents cannot file the complaint. Or, if because of
disease the offended spouse becomes incapacitated,
nobody else can file it for him or her
Both the guilty parties, it both alive, must be
included in the complaint for adultery or
concubinage (Art. 344, par 2; Rule 110, Sec 5, Rules
of Court)
The complaint must be instituted against both the wife
and her paramour. The husband is expressly
prohibited from filing the complaint against one of the
parties without including therein the other
Both must be included in the complaint even if one of
them is not guilty because it is not for the husband to
determine the question of the guilt or innocence of the
paramour of the crime of adultery, which must be left
to the court (US v. Asuncion)
Prosecution of seduction, abduction, rape or acts
of lasciviousness.
-shall not be prosecuted except upon a complaint filed
by the offended party or her parents, grandparents, or
guardian, nor, in any case, if the offender has been
expressly pardoned by the abovenamed persons, as
the case may be.
Even if the offended party was a minor, she has a
right to institute the prosecution for the above
offenses, independently of her parents, grandparents,
or guardian, unless she is incompetent or incapable
of doing so upon grounds other than her minority. If
she fails to file the complaint, the above mentioned
persons may file the same. The right to file the action
granted to the parents, grandparents or guardian shall
be exclusive of all other persons and shall be
exercised successively in the order herein provided.
(Sec. 5, Rule 110, Rules of Court; Art. 344, R.P.C.)
The fact that the minor is only 12 year old is not an
impediment for her to sign the complaint
If insane or physically disabled, the father can sign the
complaint. If dead, the mother can do it. If both dead,
the grandfather etc.
It is exclusive, because if the parent of the girl for
instance, refuses to file the complaint, the
grandparent cannot file the complaint
Prosecution of rape may be made upon complaint
by any person
Rape has been reclassified by Republic Act No. 8353
as a crime against persons and, thus, may be
prosecuted even without a complaint filed by the
offended party.
When the offended party is a minor and she does not
file the complaint, this may be done by her parents,
grandparents or guardian, in the order named.
When the offended party is of age and is in
complete possession of her mental and physical
faculties, she alone can file the complaint
If she is of age, she should be the one to file the
complaint, not the other persons named in Art. 344
A woman is of age when she has reached 21 yrs at
which majority begins
Is the father, if living, preferred to the mother in
the filing of the complaint for seduction?
No. There is no indication in said article that the
complaint must be presented by the father, if living,
and if not, then by the mother. In the case of
grandparents, there is no indication that one of the
grandparents is preferred over another.
The guardian is one legally appointed by the court
It means legal, not natural guardian; guardian legally
appointed in accordance with the provision of the law
Art. 344 prescribes no special form of establishing the
relation between the complainant and the minor who
is the victim of any of the offenses therein enumerated
nor does it require that such relation, in the case of a
guardian and ward, be necessarily proved by means
of a judicial decree or order.
It is sufficient that a person affirms under oath that he
is the guardian of a minor. But if it is denied, he has to
prove it by means of judicial order
The complaint, which must be signed by the
offended party, must be filed in court, not with the
fiscal
Even if the offended party had complained to the
fiscal, if the complaint was not subscribed by the
offended party and filed with the court as the basis of
the prosecution, the court acquires no jurisdiction to
proceed with the case
When complexed with another crime, complaint
need not be signed by the offended party
In complex crimes, where one of the component
offenses is a public crime, the criminal prosecution
may be instituted by the fiscal.
Reason: since one of the component offenses is a
public crime, the latter should prevail, because public
interest is always paramount to private interest.
Pardon in crimes against chastity
Pardon of the offenders by the offended party is a bar
to prosecution for adultery or concubinage. (Art. 344,
par. 2) The pardon may be express or implied
Pardon must come before the institution of the
criminal action and both offenders must be pardoned
by the offended party so that said pardon may be
effective. The Spanish text of the Code speaks of
pardon of the adulterous act itself, which in effect is a
pardon that extends to both defendants.
Express pardon of the offender is a bar to prosecution
for seduction, abduction, rape or acts of
lasciviousness. (Art. 344, par. 3)
Pardon in seduction must also come before the
institution of criminal action.
Parent of the offended party cannot validly pardon
the offenders in adultery or concubinage
Agreement to live separately, as evidence of
consent
A signed an agreement stipulating "that both of us are
free to get any mate and live with as husband and
wife without any interference by any of us, nor either
of us can prosecute the other for adultery or
concubinage," said stipulation is an unbridled license
for the commission of concubinage or adultery. It
constitutes consent. (Matubis vs. Praxedes)
Meaning of "shall have consented" which bars the
institution of criminal action for adultery and
concubinage.
The term "pardon" refers to the offense after its
commission. "Consent" refers to the offense prior to
its commission
No logical difference can be perceived between prior
and subsequent consent, for in both instances as the
offended party has chosen to compromise with his/her
dishonor, he/she becomes unworthy to come to court
and invoke its aid in the vindication of the wrong.
Example:
F was aware that his wife was having carnal relations
with M. With this knowledge, F and his wife executed
a separation agreement. After this agreement was
signed by them, F visited his wife and M in their
residence. Later, F filed a complaint for adultery
against his wife and M. His complaint for adultery was
dismissed, because F had pardoned the adulterous
acts of his wife. (People vs. Mendez and Del Pilar)
Affidavit showing consent, basis for new trial.
Where during the pendency of the appeal, the wife
executed an affidavit stating that she consented to the
concubinage, the case was remanded to the trial
court for new trial. (People vs. Camara)
Condonation is not pardon in concubinage or
adultery
Condonation- forgiveness based upon the
presumption and belief that the guilty party has
repented
Any act of infidelity to the vows of marriage
subsequent to in the condonation constitutes a new
offense that is subject to criminal prosecution.
When the complaint for adultery or concubinage is
based on acts already pardoned by the offended
spouse, the complaint will be dismissed.
Implied pardon or consent in adultery
Offended husband, filed a complaint for adultery after
he had surprised her in criminal intercourse with her
co-accused, he permitted his wife to continue living in
the conjugal home until her arrest, in order to take
care of their children, such sufferance does not
amount to implied pardon so as to bar criminal
prosecution. (People vs. Boca)
If it was the wife who abandoned the husband, his
failure to look for her would not amount to consent to
her adulterous acts committed during the period of
separation. (Ocampo vs. Florenciano)
Delay in the filing of complaint, if satisfactorily
explained, does not indicate pardon
(See p. 957)
The pardon must be express in seduction,
abduction, rape, or acts of lasciviousness
Where after the consented abduction was
consummated, the girl's father allowed her to stay
with the accused on the faith of his assurance that he
would marry her, such consent cannot be
construed as a pardon. (People vs. Garcia)
Pardon by parent, grand parent or guardian
The mother of the offended girl, 11 years of age,
cannot validly grant pardon, because the pardon must
be granted directly by the offended party, and it is only
when she is dead or otherwise incapacitated to grant
it, that her parents, grandparents or guardian may do
so for her. (People vs. Arguelles)
Pardon by the parent must be accompanied by the
express pardon of the girl herself.
Pardon by the offended party who is a minor must
have the concurrence of parents
Reason: In her tender age and lack of sufficient
knowledge, would hardly know the full impact and
consequences of her acts. In her indifference and
inexperience, the parents are given the right and
power to protect her.
Exception: when the offended girl has no parents
who could concur in the pardon, she can extend a
pardon even if she is a minor
Marriage of the offender with the offended party
benefits the co-principals, accomplices and
accessories
Marriage of the offender with the offended party in
seduction, abduction, acts of lasciviousness and
rape, extinguishes criminal action or remits the
penalty already imposed
Even if the accused as accomplice is already serving
sentence, the marriage of the principal with the
offended party must benefit him. (Laceste vs. Santos)
This rule also applies to the accessory after the fact
Marriage, however, must be entered into in good faith,
and with the intent of fulfilling marital duties and
obligations
The co-principals referred to in Art. 344 are those by
inducement and by indispensable cooperation in one
single crime of rape. If there are two or more crimes of
rape committed by several persons as principals by
direct participation, the rule is not applicable because
each carnal access amounts to a separate and
independent crime of rape. (People vs. Bernardo)
In rape, marriage extinguishes the criminal action
or the penalty imposed only as to the principal.
Since rape has ceased to be a crime against chastity,
but is now a crime against persons, it now appears
that marriage extinguishes the penal action and the
penalty only as to the principal (i.e., husband) and not
as to the accomplices and accessories.
Actual marriage, not desire to marry, extinguishes
criminal liability.
Marriage of the offender with the offended party in
other crimes does not extinguish criminal liability
of the offender
Ex: crimes of slander by deed and libel, art 344 is not
applicable because such crimes are not among those
enumerated therein
Marriage of parties guilty of adultery or
concubinage, not included
-as specifically mentioned in the last paragraph; the
reason for this is that both parties are offenders
(See p. 960)
In a prosecution for concubinage, the marriage
between the erring husband and his concubine,
before or after the institution of the case is not
available as a defense
Art. 345. Civil liability of persons guilty of crimes
against chastity.
1. To indemnify the offended woman.
2. To acknowledge the offspring, unless the law
should prevent him from doing so.
3. In every case to support the offspring.
The adulterer and the concubine can be sentenced
only to indemnify for damages caused to the offended
spouse.
The last paragraph of Article 345 authorizes the
imposition of indemnity in cases of concubinage
against the concubine only, but not against the guilty
husband. (People vs. Ramirez) The guilty wife in
adultery cannot also be sentenced to indemnify for
damages caused to the offended husband. The law
speaks of adulterer, not adulteress.
Under the Revised Penal Code, there is no civil
liability for acts of lasciviousness- Art. 345
mentions only person guilty of rape, seduction, or
abduction, and the adulterer and concubine
Reasons why only indemnity is possible in
adultery and concubinage.
Acknowledgment of the offspring is not legally
possible, because only children born of parents who
could marry at the time of conception may be
acknowledged. Support of the offspring is not
included, because the person who gives birth, if at all,
is one of the offenders and not the offended party.
Moral damages in crimes against chastity
Art. 2219 of the Civil Code provides that moral
damages may be recovered in seduction, abduction,
rape, or other lascivious acts, as well as in adultery
and concubinage. The parents of the female seduced,
abducted, raped or abused may also recover moral
damages.
Moral damages may be recovered both by the
offended party and by her parents.
(See People v. Fontanilla, p. 961)
Civil liability of the offenders in multiple rape
All the accused must support the offspring, as any
one of them may be the father and that each and
every one of them contributed to, and cooperated in,
the giving birth of the child
Judgment to recognize offspring, when proper;
Art. 283, Civil Code, applied.
"when the period of the offense coincides more or less
with that of the conception" means that there is
pregnancy within the period of conception, which is
within 120 days from the commission of the offense.
In a criminal action for rape, there must be evidence
that the offended woman became pregnant within
120 days from the date of the commission of the
crimes. In the absence of such evidence, it is not
proper for the judgment to indulge in speculation by
sentencing the accused "to recognize the offspring, if
any
Prohibition against acknowledgment of offspring
when offender is married, not applicable under the
Family Code.
Article 283 of the Civil Code, the father is obliged to
recognize the child as his natural child in cases of
rape, abduction and seduction when the period of the
offense coincides, more or less, with the period of
conception, it has been held, however, that
acknowledgment is disallowed if the offender is a
married man, with only support for the offspring as
part of the sentence.
With the passage of the Family Code, however, the
classifications of acknowledged natural children and
natural children by legal fiction have been eliminated.
At present, children are classified as only either
legitimate or illegitimate, with no further positive act
required of the parent as the law itself provides the
child's status. As such, natural children under the
Civil Code fall within the classification of
illegitimate children
Article 176 confers parental authority over illegitimate
children on the mother, and likewise provides for their
entitlement to support in conformity with the Family
Code. As such, there is no further need for the
prohibition against acknowledgment of the
offspring by the offender who is married which
would vest parental authority in him. Therefore,
under Article 345 of RPC, the offender in a rape
case who is married can only be sentenced to
indemnify the victim and support the offspring.
However, in light of Article 201 of the Family Code, the
amount and terms of support should be determined by
the trial court only after due notice and hearing.
(People vs. Bayani)
Recognition of offspring in multiple rape
When three persons, one after another, raped a
woman, not one may be required to recognize the
offspring of the offended woman, it being impossible
to determine the paternity thereof. (People vs. Pedro
de Leon)
Civil liability in rape of married woman
Only indemnity is allowed in rape of a married woman;
fixed at P50,000.00
Defendant cannot be sentenced to support the
offspring.
The same reason which prevents the offender from
acknowledging the offspring should also prohibit him
from entering periodically the home of the woman
raped, in order to comply with the duty of supporting
the spurious offspring. If this is allowed, it will be the
source of great disturbance to the family rights of the
parents who should live in peace and enjoy the
attributes of their legitimate authority over their
children. (U.S. vs. Yambao)
Art. 346. Liability of ascendants, guardians,
teachers, or other persons entrusted with the
custody of the offended party
Persons who cooperate as accomplices but are
punished as principals in rape, seduction, abduction,
etc. They are:
1. Ascendants,
 2. Guardians, The woman introduces a stranger in the family and
3. Curators, defrauds the legitimate heirs
4. Teachers, and
5. Any other person, who cooperates as The woman who simulates birth and the one who
accomplice with abuse of authority or furnishes the child are both responsible as principals.
confidential relationship
The simulation which is a crime is that which
These persons participate as accomplices in the alters the civil status of a person

commission of any of the crimes mentioned, but they A woman who pretends to be pregnant and simulates
are held liable as principal a birth, with no other purpose than to belie the
reputation that she is sterile but introduces no
"Crimes embraced in chapters second, third and strange child in the family, and causes no child to
fourth of this title." The crimes referred to are: lose his civil status, and in fact occasions no
damage, whether immediate or remote, does not incur
1. Rape.
any criminal liability.
2. Acts of lasciviousness.
3. Qualified seduction. The fact that the child will be benefited by the
4. Simple seduction.
simulation of its birth is not a defense
5. Acts of lasciviousness with the consent of
the offended party. Although the status newly acquired may be better
6. Corruption of minors. than its first legal status, the law, punishes the offense
7. White slave trade. as it creates a false status to the detriment of the
8. Forcible abduction.
members of the family into which the child is
9. Consented abduction.
deceitfully introduced
Art. 347. Simulation of births, substitution of one
Substituting one child for another
child for another, and concealment or
abandonment of a legitimate child Ex: Si Nora Aunor pinanganak niya si Mau, tapos si
Vilma Santos pinanganak niya si Kim. Tapos sabi ni
Acts punished:
Nora ayaw niya anak si Mau, kasi gusto niya Chinese.
1. Simulation of births. Tapos pinagpalit niya.
2. Substitution of one child for another.
3. Concealing or abandoning any legitimate The substitution may be effected by placing a live
child with intent to cause such child to lose child of a woman in place of a dead one of another
its civil status. woman.

The object of the crime under Art. 347 is the
creation of false, or the causing of the loss of,
civil status.
Commission of any of the acts must have for its
object, the creation of a false civil status. The
purpose is to cause the loss of any trace as to the
filiation of the child.
Concealing or abandoning any legitimate child.
In the third way of committing the crime, three
requisites must be present, namely:
(1) The child must be legitimate;
(2) The offender conceals or abandons such child;
and

The child, whose birth the woman feigns, loses its civil
status in the family of the woman who has really given
its birth and acquires, through fraud, another status to
which it has no right.
The same may be said with reference to the
substitution of one child for another
(3) The offender has the intent to cause such child to
lose its civil status.
The child must be legitimate and a fully developed
and living being, as the child born not capable of
living has no status, nor can he transmit any rights
whatsoever.

Simulation of birth. The unlawful sale of a child by its father, is not a

Takes place when the woman pretends to be pregnant
when in fact she is not, and on the day of the
supposed delivery, takes the child of another as her
own
crime under this article.
Reason: There was no abandonment of a child in the
sense it should be understood in Art. 347, that is,
leaving the child at a public place where other people
may find it, and causing the child to lose its civil
status.

Abandon- The practice of abandoning new-born

infants and very young children at the door of
hospitals, churches and other religious institutions
was formerly so well known in Spain.

Concealing a legitimate child must be for the

purpose of causing it to lose its civil status

He who places at the door of a charitable person a

new-born child which is in a condition to stand the first
inclemencies of the weather is supposed to do it in
order that it may be taken up and protected and,
therefore, the legal presumption must be that he does
not act with any other purpose than to cause the loss
of any trace as to the filiation of the child. (U.S. vs.
Capillo)

When is the abandonment of a minor a crime

against security and when is it a crime against the
civil status of person?

The third form of committing this offense is by

abandoning a child. Under Art. 276, a child is also
abandoned.

Art 276 Art 347

Child is abandoned 3rd form of committing
the offense is by
abandoning the child
offender must be one Offender is any person
who has the custody of
the child
The purpose is to avoid The purpose is to cause
the obligation of rearing the child to lose its civil
and caring for the child status
A woman who has The purpose of the
given birth to a child, woman in abandoning
abandons the child in a the child is to preserve
certain place, to free the inheritance of her
herself of the obligation child by a former
and duty of rearing and marriage. The purpose
caring for the child of the woman is to
cause the child to lose
its civil status so that it
may not be able to
share in the inheritance
Suppose a child, one day after its birth, was taken
to, and left in, the midst of a lonely forest, and it
was found by a hunter who took it home.
It is attempted infanticide, as the act of the
offender is an attempt against its life

Liability of physician or surgeon.

-who cooperates in the execution of any of these

crimes, is also liable if he acts in violation of the
duties of his profession or office (Art. 347, par. 3)