Art 2. Application of its provisions. – Except as
provided in the treaties and laws of preferential
application, the provisions of this Code shall be
enforced not only within the Philippine Archipelago,
including its atmosphere, its interior waters and
maritime zone, but also outside of its jurisdiction,
against those who:
(1) Should commit an offense while on a
Philippine ship or airship;
(2) Should forge or counterfeit any coin or
currency note of the Philippine Islands or
obligations and securities issued by the
Government of the Philippine Islands;
(3) Should be liable for acts connected with the
introduction into these Islands of the
obligations and securities mentioned in the
preceding number;
(4) While being public officers or employees,
should commit an offense in the exercise of
their functions; or
(5) Should commit any of the crimes against
national security and the law of nations,
defined in Title One of Book Two of this Code.
1. Scope of application on RPC.
a. Outside of Philippine territorial
jurisdiction in certain cases.
b. Acts committed in air, at sea, and in
foreign country when such acts affect
the political or economic life of the
nation.
2. Except as provided in the treaties and laws of
preferential application.
a. General rule is that provisions of the
RPC shall be enforced against any
person who violates any of its
provisions while living or sojourning in
the Philippines.
b. The exceptions to that rule may be
provided by the treaties and laws of
preferential application.
3. Atmosphere.
a. Sovereignty of subjacent state, and its
penal laws, extend to all the air space
which covers its territory.
b. Right of way or easement in favor of
foreign aircrafts
4. Interior waters.
Creeks, rivers, lakes, bays, gulfs, straits,
coves, inlets, roadsteads, lying wholly
within the 3-mile limit.
5. Maritime zone.
a. According to treaties, 3 miles is the
fixed lengths from the coastline,
starting from low water mark.
b. Includes bays, gulfs, adjacent parts of
the sea or recesses in the coastline,
with width to their entrance is < 12
miles
c. Straits of < 6 miles wide.
i. Otherwise, space in the center
outside of the maritime league
limits is “open sea”.
6. When offender should commit an offense
while on a Philippine ship or airship.
a. Any person who commits crime on
board a Ph ship, even outside of
territory can be civilly liable.
b. BUT when ship is in territory of a
foreign country, it is subject to laws of
that country.
c. Ph ship = registered in the Philippine
Bureau of Customs. If not, even if
owner if Filipino, ship is not Ph.
7. When the offender should forge or counterfeit
any coin or currency note of the Philippines or
obligations and securities issued by the
Government.
a. Even when in a foreign country.
8. When the offender should be liable for acts
connected with the introduction into the
Philippines of the obligations and securities
mentioned in the preceding number.
a. Introduction of forged or counterfeited
obligations and securities into the Ph is
as dangerous as the act itself, to the
economic interest of the country.
9. When the offender, while being a public officer
or employee, should commit an offense in the
exercise of his functions.
a. Direct bribery (Art 210) and indirect
bribery (Art 211)
b. Frauds against the public treasury (Art
213)
c. Possession of prohibited interest (Art
216)
d. Malversation of public funds or
property (Art 217)
e. Failure of accountable officer to render
accounts (Art 218)
f. Illegal use of public funds or property
(Art 220)
g. Failure to make delivery of public funds
or property (Art 221)
 h. Falsification by a public officer or
employee committed with abuse of his
official position (Art 171)
If these felonies are committed abroad by
any public officers or employees while in the
exercise of his functions, he ca n be
prosecuted here.
10. When the offender should commit any of the
crimes against the national security and the
law of nations.
a. Treason (Art 114)
b. Conspiracy and proposal to commit
treason (Art 115)
c. Espionage (Art 117)
d. Inciting to war and giving motives for
reprisals (Art 118)
e. Violation of neutrality (Art 119)
f. Correspondence with hostile country
(Art 120)
g. Flight to enemy’s country (Art 121)
h. Piracy and mutiny on the high seas (Art
112)
11. Such crimes committed outside of the
Philippines shall be cognizable by the RTC in
which the charge was first filed (RC 110 Sec 15)
12. Offenses on board a foreign vessel while in
Philippines waters is triable before our Court.
13. Rules of jurisdiction over crimes committed in
foreign vessels.
a. French rule – not triable in the courts of
THAT country, UNLESS its commission
affect the peace and security of the
territory
b. English rule – triable in that country,
UNLESS they merely affect things within
the vessel, or they refer to the internal
management thereof. Philippines uses
this rule!
14. Crimes of breach of public order committed in
foreign merchant vessel in transit is not triable
by our courts.***
a. Smoking opinion is a breach of public
order.
15. We have no jurisprudence over offenses
committed on board foreign warships in
territorial waters.
16. ***
FELONIES
Art 3. Definitions – Acts and omissions punishable by
law are felonies (delitos)
Felonies are committed not only by means of deceit
(dolo) but also by means of fault (culpa).
There is deceit when the act is performed with
deliberate intent; and there is fault when the wrongful
act results from imprudence, negligence, lack of
foresight, or lack of skills.
1. Delitos – offenses
2. Act – any overt bodily movement affecting
external world.
a. Internal acts are beyond sphere of
penal law
3. Omissions – inaction. There must be a law
requiring its performance.
a. Omission to report a witnessed crime is
not felony/punishable.
4. Dolo – with malice/ deliberate intent
a. Freedom
b. Intelligence to determine morality
c. Intent as shown by over acts
i. If act produce natural/direct
result, unlikely na
unintentional.
ii. Criminal intent  criminal
liability. Assumed from
unlawful act. But if you were
acting in good faith, none.
5. Culpa – no malice/no intent
a. Imprudence – deficiency of action;
precaution to avoid injury. Invokes lack
of skill.
b. Negligence – deficiency of perception;
attention to foresee impending injury.
Invokes lack of foresight.
c. Culpa is punishable because we need to
be cautious, prudent, and
commonsensical, so that selves and
others are not exposed to danger.
6. Voluntary. Why?
a. Classical theory (free will)
b. Rationality of man
c. intent = voluntary; imprudence =
voluntary w/o malice.
7. Mistake of Fact
a. Would have been lawful if believed fact
is correct.
b. Intention is lawful
c. Mistake is w/o fault or carelessness
8. Mala in se and Mala Prohibita
 a. Mala in se – evil in nature; must have
criminal intent
b. Mala prohibita – criminal intent not
needed for special laws, even tho you
have good faith (e.g. intimidating
electors)
When acts are inherently evil, they are
mala in se even if punished by special
law.
9. Motive
a. Essential ONLY when there is doubt as
to the IDENTITY of assailant.
b. Used to ascertain truth between two
versions/theories of killing.
c. Proof of motive NOT indispensable
where guilt is otherwise established by
sufficient evidence.
d. Motive NOT enough to support
conviction.
e. Lack of motive can be used as defense.
f. Proving motive. (1) testimony (2)
evidence)
Art 4. Criminal liability – Criminal liability shall be
incurred:
1. By any person committing a felony (delito)
although the wrongful act done be different
from that which he intended.
2. By any person performing an act which would
be an offense against persons or property,
were it not for the inherent impossibility of its
accomplishment or on account of the
employment of inadequate or ineffectual
means.
1. Person NOT committing felony is NOT criminally
liable for unintended results.
2. Criminal liability needs intention to commit
felony.
Art 12. Circumstances which exempt from criminal
liability. - The following are exempt from criminl
liability:
1. An imbecile or an insane person, unless the
latter has acted during a lucid interval.
When the imbecile or an insane person has
committed an act which the law defines as a
felony (delito), the court shall order his
confinement in one of the hospitals or asylums
established for person s thus afflicted, which
he shall not be permitted to leave without first
obtaining the permission of the same court.
2. A person under nine years of age.
3. A person over nine years of age and under
fifteen, unless he has acted with discernment, i
in which case, such minor shall be proceeded
against in accordance with the provisions of
Article 80 of this Code.
When such minor is adjudged to be criminally
irresponsible, the court, in conformity with the
provisions of this and the preceding paragraph,
shall commit him to the care and custody of his
family who shall be charged with his
surveillance and education; otherwise, he shall
be committed to the care of some institution
or person mentioned in said Article 80.**
4. Any person who, while performing a lawful act
with due care, causes an injury by mere
accident without fault or intention of causing
it.
5. Any person who acts under the compulsion of
an irresistible force.
6. Any person who acts under the impulse of an
uncontrollable fear of an equal or greater
injury.
7. Any person who fails to perform an act
required by law, when prevented by some
lawful or insuperable cause.
Art 365. Imprudence and negligence. — Any person
who, by reckless imprudence, shall commit any act
which, had it been intentional, would constitute a
grave felony, shall suffer the penalty of arresto mayor
in its maximum period to prision correccional in its
medium period; if it would have constituted a less
grave felony, the penalty of arresto mayor in its
minimum and medium periods shall be imposed; if it
would have constituted a light felony, the penalty of
arresto menor in its maximum period shall be
imposed.
Any person who, by simple imprudence or negligence,
shall commit an act which would otherwise constitute
a grave felony, shall suffer the penalty of arresto
mayor in its medium and maximum periods; if it would
have constituted a less serious felony, the penalty of
arresto mayor in its minimum period shall be imposed.
When the execution of the act covered by this article
shall have only resulted in damage to the property of
another, the offender shall be punished by a fine
ranging from an amount equal to the value of said
damages to three times such value, but which shall in
no case be less than twenty-five pesos.
A fine not exceeding two hundred pesos and censure
shall be imposed upon any person who, by simple
imprudence or negligence, shall cause some wrong
which, if done maliciously, would have constituted a
light felony.
In the imposition of these penalties, the court shall
exercise their sound discretion, without regard to the
rules prescribed in Article sixty-four.chanrobles virtual
law library
The provisions contained in this article shall not be
applicable:
1. When the penalty provided for the offense is equal
to or lower than those provided in the first two
paragraphs of this article, in which case the court shall
impose the penalty next lower in degree than that
which should be imposed in the period which they
may deem proper to apply.
2. When, by imprudence or negligence and with
violation of the Automobile Law, to death of a person
shall be caused, in which case the defendant shall be
punished by prision correccional in its medium and
maximum periods.
Reckless imprudence consists in voluntary, but without
malice, doing or falling to do an act from which
material damage results by reason of inexcusable lack
of precaution on the part of the person performing of
failing to perform such act, taking into consideration
his employment or occupation, degree of intelligence,
physical condition and other circumstances regarding
persons, time and place.
Simple imprudence consists in the lack of precaution
displayed in those cases in which the damage
impending to be caused is not immediate nor the
danger clearly manifest.
The penalty next higher in degree to those provided
for in this article shall be imposed upon the offender
who fails to lend on the spot to the injured parties
such help as may be in this hand to give. (As amended
by R.A. 1790, approved June 21, 1957).