Title 2: Crimes Against the Fundamental Laws of the State Flashcards
Offenders under this title. What is the general rule and the Exception
GR:
Offenders are public officers or employees
Exceptions:
1. Art 133 (Offending Religious Feelings): The offender may be any person.
2. When a private person conspires with a public officer or acts as accomplice or accessory in the commission of the crime.
Classes of Arbitrary Detention
- Detaining a person without legal ground (Art 124)
- Delay in the delivery of detained persons to the proper authorities (Art 125)
- Delaying release (Art 126)
Elements of Arbitrary Detention
Art 124: Detaining a person without legal ground
PDD
- Offender is a public officer or employee vested with authority and jurisdiction to effect arrest and detain a person
- If private person or no authority to detain, illegal detention - He detains a person
- Detention is without legal grounds
Art 124: Detaining a person without legal ground
What is “Without legal ground”
- When he has not committed any crime or at least there is no reasonable ground of rsuspicion that he has committed a crime
- When he is not suffering from violent insanity or any other ailment requiring compulsory confinement in a hospital
When is there detention?
Art 124: Detaining a person without legal ground
Curtailment of the victim’s liberty need not involve any physical restraint. The acts of the accused can produce fear in the mind of the victim sufficient to compel the victim to limit his own actions and movements in accordance to the wishes of the accused.
Art 124: Detaining a person without legal ground
Legal Grounds for the Detention of Persons
Art 124: Detaining a person without legal ground
- Commission of a crime
a. Arrest with a warrant
b. Warrantless Arrest (only for certain instances) - Violent insanity or other ailment requiring compulsary confinement of the patient in a hospital
Exceptions: When the peace officers acted in good faith even if the grounds mentioned above are not obtained.
Instances of a valid warrantless arrest
Art 124: Detaining a person without legal ground
- In Falgrante Delicto: When, in his presence, that person to be arrrested has committed, is* actually committing, or is attempting to commit an offense.*
- Hot Pursuit:When an offense has in fact been committed, and he has probable cause to believe based on personal knowledge of facts and circumstances that the person to be arrested has committed it.
- Escaping Prisoner: When the person to be arrested is a prisoner who has escaped from a penal establishment.
“in his prescense” = sees or hear the offense and proceeds at once
Probable Cause
Art 124: Detaining a person without legal ground
Determination of probable cause by arresting officer is based on his personal knowledge of acts and circumstances that the person sought to be arrested has committed.
The legality of the detention of a person does not depend upon the actual commission of a crime but opon the nature of the deed when its characterization as a crime may be reasonably inferred by the officer to whome the law at the moment leaves he decision for the urgent purpose of suspening the liberty of that person
Requirements for a valid warrantless arrest
Art 124: Detaining a person without legal ground
- the person to be arrested must execute an overt act indicating that he has just committed and is actually committing, or is attempting to commit a crime
- such overt act is done in the prescense or within the view of an arresting officer
- Does not require that the arresting officers to personally witness the commission of the offense with their own eyes
Plain View Doctrine
Art 124: Detaining a person without legal ground
Objects in the plain view of an officer who has the right to be in the position to have that view are subject to seizure and may be presented as evidence.
Arbitrary Detention v. Illegal Detention (Art. 267)
Art 124: Detaining a person without legal ground
Arbitrary: Must be a public officer with authority to detain a person
Illegal Detention: May be private person or public officer who does not have the power to arrest.
Arbitrary Detention v. Unlawful Arrest
Art 124: Detaining a person without legal ground
Arbitrary Detention
- Public officer detains a person without legal ground and with no intention to bring the offended to proper authority
Unlawful Arrest (269)
- Any person who brings the victim to proper authority but arrest is without reasonable ground
Situation Contemplated in Delay in Delivery
Art 125: Delay in the Delivery of Detained Persons
Arrest must be made without a warrant but there exists a legal ground for the arrest.
If there is a warrant, a person may be detained indefinitely as information has already been filed against him, making delivery to the court unnecessary.
Elements of Delay in the Delivery of Detained Persons to the Proper Judicial Authority
Art 125: Delay in the Delivery of Detained Persons
- Offender is a Public officer or employee
- He has detained a person for some legal ground but without a warrant of arrest; and
- He fails to deliver such person to the proper judicial authorities within:
- 12 hrs for crimes punishable by light penalties or their equivalent
- 18 hrs for crimes punishable by correctional penalties or their equivalent
- 36 hrs for crimespunishable by afflictive penalties or their equivalent
“or their equivalent” = applicable to SPLs
“Deliver” = filing of correct information with the proper judicial authorities. It does not mean physical delivery or turnover of arrested person to court.
What are the Light, Correctional, and Afflictive Penalties?
Art 125: Delay in the Delivery of Detained Persons
Light: Arresto Menor or a fine of <=40,000 or both
Correctional:
- Prision Correccional
- Arresto Mayor
- Suspension
- Destierro
- Fine of 40,000<x<=1,200,000
Afflictive
- Reclusion Perpetua
- Reclusion Temporal
- Prision Mayor
- Fine of greater than 1,200,000