CRIMES AGAINST

PERSONS
PART 1
 I. THE DESTRUCTION OF LIFE

The essence of crime here involves the taking of human life,

destruction of the fetus or inflicting injuries. Under Section I, here are
the important crimes enumerated:
► PARRICIDE
► MURDER
► HOMICIDE
► GIVING ASSISTANCE TO SUICIDE
► DISCHARGE OF FIREARMS
► INFANTICIDE AND ABORTION
PARRICIDE (ART. 246, RPC)

1. A person is killed;
2. The deceased is killed by the accused;
3. The deceased is:

a. Father
b. Mother
c. Child, whether legitimate or illegitimate
d. Legitimate other ascendant or another descendant (relatives)
e. Legitimate spouse of the accused. (Wife or husband)
TAKE NOTE, IN PARRICIDE:

► The relationship of the offender with the victim is

the essential element of parricide.
✔ In terms of husband and wife, they should be LEGALLY
married.
✔ The father, mother, or child, may be legitimate or
illegitimate.
✔ Other ascendant or descendant must be legitimate.
✔ If a child is killed, then the child should not be less than
three days old.
 EXAMPLE

► X is the illegitimate son of Y. Z is the wife of Y. X killed Y.

What is the crime committed here?
► A is the natural son of B. C is the illegitimate father of B .
A killed C. What is the crime committed here?
► D is the newborn baby of F and E. D is only 1 day old. E
killed D. What is the crime committed here?
 ART. 247 – DEATH AND PHYSICAL INJURIES UNDER
EXCEPTIONAL CIRCUMSTANCES

Note: This article does not define a crime. It provides a defense,

which the accused must prove.
Elements:

1.A legally married person or a parent surprises his spouse or

daughter, the latter under 18 years of age and living with him, in the
act of committing sexual intercourse.
ART. 247 – CONTINUED

2.He or she kills any or both of them or inflicts upon

any or both of them any serious physical injury in
the act or immediately thereafter.

3.He has not promoted or facilitated the

prostitution of his wife or daughter, or that he or
she has not consented to the infidelity of the other
spouse.
 IN ARTICLE 247:

► The accused must be a legally married person. (not live in or common

law.)
► The daughter who caught the parent engaged in sexual intercourse
should be 18 years of age.
► “SURPRISING” the spouse or young daughter in the act of intercourse is
an indispensable requisite.
► The killing or serious physical injuries must be IMMEDIATELY THEREAFTER.
 EXAMPLE

Vander caught his wife, Powder, on top of

Silco, engaged in sexual intercourse. Vander
readied his pocket knife, and proceeded to
stab Silco until he was dead. Can article 247
be a defense in this situation?
ART. 248 – MURDER

1. That a person was killed

2. That the accused killed him.
3. That the killing was attended by any
of the qualifying circumstances
mentioned in Art. 248
4. That the killing is not parricide or
infanticide
 QUALIFYING CIRCUMSTANCES OF
MURDER (ART. 248)
1. With treachery, taking advantage of superior strength, with the
aid of armed men, or employing means to weaken the defense,
or of means or persons to insure or afford impunity

► Treachery – “sudden” and “unexpected”, “victim has no means

to defend himself.”
► With aid of armed men – had companions when he committed
the crime and helped him.
► Insure or afford impunity – preventing one’s identity to be
recognized.
2. In consideration of a price, reward or
promise.

► The one who gave the price, reward, or promise is a

PRINCIPAL BY DIRECT INDUCEMENT
► The one who received the price or reward would not
have killed the victim were in not for the price or
reward. Such person is a PRINCIPAL BY DIRECT
PARTICIPATION.

BOTH ARE GUILTY OF THE CRIME OF

MURDER.
3. By means of inundation, fire, poison,
explosion, shipwreck, stranding on a vessel,
derailment or assault upon a railroad, fall of
an airship, by motor vehicles, or with the use
of any other means involving great waste
and ruin

✔ Treachery is inherent in poison.

4. On occasion of any of the calamities
enumerated in the preceding paragraph, or of
an earthquake, eruption of volcano,
destructive cyclone, epidemic, or other public
calamity
5. With evident premeditation
► The time when the offender determined to commit the crime

► An act manifestly indicating that the offender clung to his or

her determination

► A lapse of time between the determination and the execution,

sufficient to allow the offender to reflect upon the
consequences of his act.
6. With cruelty, by deliberately and inhumanly
augmenting the suffering of the victim, or outraging or
scoffing at his person or corpse.

Outraging – committing an extremely vicious or deeply

insulting act.
Scoffing – means to jeer, and implies a showing of
irreverence.

Example: The killer scoffed at the dead when the

intestines were removed and hung around the neck of
the victim’s brother “as a necklace” and the lungs and
liver were facetiously described as “pulutan” (People v.
Carmina, G.R. No. 81404, January 28, 1991)
HOMICIDE (ART. 249)

1.That a person is killed

2.That the accused killed him without any justifying
circumstance
3.The accused had intention to kill which is presumed
4.The killing was not attended by any of the
qualifying circumstances of murder, or by that of
parricide or infanticide
IN HOMICIDE…
► There is still intent to kill but no qualifying circumstances of murder, or the killing
is not parricide or infanticide.
► In Homicide, the victim must be killed to consummate the crime. If the victim is
not killed, it is either frustrated or attempted.
► This can be committed through negligence.
❖ THERE IS NO FRUSTRATED/ATTEMPTED HOMICIDE THROUGH NEGLIGENCE.
❖ INTENT TO KILL IS INCOMPATIBLE WITH NEGLIGENCE OR IMPRUDENCE.
❖ THE RESULTING CRIME MIGHT BE RECKLESS IMPRUDENCE RESULTING TO PHYSICAL
INJURIES. (SERIOUS/LESS SERIOUS)
EXAMPLE

Lito fired his gun at Caloy, right at his lower

abdomen. Caloy bled continuously until he
died of blood loss. What is the crime
committed here?
EXAMPLE

Using the shadows as his cover, Echo

slashed Maria in the alley, and then
proceeded to hide her body near the trash
can, urinated on her corpse, and left it there
to decay. What is the crime committed
here?
 EXAMPLE

In a fencing match, Elise accidentally pierced the

exposed part of Henry’s armor with a fencing sword,
near his heart. Due to this, Henry collapsed during the
match, bleeding severely. He was rushed to the hospital,
and there, he died. What is the crime committed?

FOLLOW UP: What is the crime committed if Henry

survived?
EXAMPLE

Arnie, with intent to kill, fired his pistol at

Bernie, but was not able to hit him. Bernie
cried and begged A not to shoot him. A, out
of pity, discontinued from firing his pistol
again. Is Arnie criminally liable for what
crime?
EXAMPLE

Hubert shot Antonio in the stomach, causing

a fatal wound. Antonio was rushed to the
hospital and was immediately given
emergency treatment. Antonio died. What
is the crime committed by Hubert?
Manoy poisoned Richie’s cheeseburger with
cyanide. Upon finishing his food, Richie started to
vomit and fall to the floor. Manoy just watched.
Richie was then rushed to the hospital for treatment.
Three scenarios:
1. Richie died in the hospital. What is the crime committed?
2. Richie survived in the hospital after first aid application. What is the
crime committed?
3. Richie did not eat the burger and threw it away. What is the crime
committed?
ARTICLE 254. DISCHARGE OF
FIREARMS
1. Offender discharges a firearm against or
at another person;
2. Offender had no intention to kill that
person.

If the firearm is not discharged at a person,

there is no crime of discharge of firearm.
 The following considerations are given under DISCHARGE OF
FIREARMS by the Supreme Court:

∙ If serious physical injuries resulted from discharge, the crime committed is

the complex crime of serious physical injury with illegal discharge of
firearm, or
∙ if less serious physical injury, the complex crime of less serious physical
injury with illegal discharge of firearm will apply.
► Firing a gun at a person even if merely to frighten him constitutes illegal
discharge of firearm
 RULES IN ARTICLE 254:
The discharge of the firearm should be against or at another
person.
► The discharge of firearm is against another person if the
offender is pointing the gun towards the other person who was
looking at the accused.
► The discharge of firearm is at another person if the other person
was not looking at the accused, such as his back was turned or
the other person’s attention was somewhere else other than
the accused.
IT IS NOT ILLEGAL DISCHARGE OF FIREARM IF:
► the discharge of firearm to another
direction, such as to the sky or the ground, is
not covered by this offense.
► However, such a discharge in another
direction may constitute a different offense or
violation.
EXAMPLE
Dagohoy intimidated the complaining witnesses by pointing his revolver
in their direction, where they struggled to pull off the gun from him and
disarmed him. In the course of the struggle, the Dagohoy discharged
the revolver so close to one of the witnesses. What crime is committed
here?

Follow up: What if one of the witnesses was hit in the ear and lost his
sense of hearing? What crime is committed?
THERE MUST BE NO INTENT TO KILL.
To commit the offense of discharge of firearms, the accused should
have no intent to kill.

This means that the discharge of firearm was for another reason other
than to kill, such as a warning shot or to scare the other person.

Otherwise, if there was intent to kill by the accused, then it may

constitute as a different offense, such as homicide or murder,
depending on the circumstances.
EXAMPLE

Indoy a drunken policeman, fired upon the house of

Selya, hitting random spots of the house, such as the
door, kitchen, and walls of the house, not knowing what
part of the house the people were inside. The noise
disturbed the neighborhood. What crime is committed
here?
INFANTICIDE (ART. 255) AND ABORTION (ART. 256 –
257)

INFANTICIDE
1.A child was killed by the accused.
2.Deceased child was less than 3 days old or less than
72 hours of age
3.Accused killed the said child
IN INFANTICIDE…

► If the child is more than 3 days old or more than 72 hours

of age, the crime is considered as PARRICIDE under
ARTICLE 246.
► If the child is still a fetus, the crime committed is either
intentional or unintentional abortion, as the case may be.
► If the fetus is capable of living outside the mother’s womb
(intra – uterine life of 24 hours) then the crime committed
is INFANTICIDE.
WHAT IS ABORTION?

► The willful killing of the fetus in the uterus or the

violent expulsion of the fetus from the mother’s
womb.
INTENTIONAL AND UNINTENTIONAL ABORTION
KIND OF ABORTION COMMITTED ACTS COMMITTED ELEMENTS

INTENTIONAL ABORTION (ART. 256) 1. Using any violence upon the person of 1. There is a pregnant woman;
• IF PERFORMED WITH VIOLENCE – the pregnant woman; 2. Violence is exerted, or drugs or beverages
RECLUSION TEMPORAL
2. Acting, but without using violence, without administered, or that the accused otherwise
• WITHOUT USING VIOLENCE AND
the consent of the woman. (By acts upon such pregnant woman;
NO CONSENT – PRISION MAYOR
• IF THE WOMAN HAS CONSENTED administering drugs or beverages upon 3. As a result of the use of violence or drugs
– PRISION CORRECIONAL such pregnant woman without her consent.) or beverages upon her, or any other act of the
3. Acting (by administering drugs or accused, the fetus dies,
beverages), with the consent of the either in the womb or after having been
pregnant woman. expelled therefrom;
4. The abortion is intended.

UNINTENTIONAL ABORTION (257) Any unintentional act that expels 1. There is a pregnant woman;
2. Violence is used upon such pregnant
the fetus from the womb of the
woman without intending an
mother abortion;
3. The violence is intentionally exerted;
4. As a result of the violence, the fetus
dies, either in the womb or after
having been expelled therefrom.
 RULES: INTENTIONAL RULES: UNINTENTIONAL
ABORTION ABORTION

► The fetus must die in ► If the abortion is not

consummated intended, and the fetus
does not die, despite of
abortion
the violence exerted, the
► If the abortion is crime may only be
INTENDED, and the PHYSICAL INJURIES.
fetus does not die, it is ► NO FRUSTRATED
frustrated intentional UNINTENTIONAL
abortion. ABORTION.
EXAMPLE

Vicky, believing that her child is pregnant with an

aswang gave her daughter a drink that dissolves
the child within the womb. Two hours after, her
child expelled the child already dead. What is the
crime committed here?

► If the child did not die, what is the crime

committed?
EXAMPLE

Hillary was 5 months pregnant. Julio, a retarded 45

year old man danced wildly, and as a result,
tripped and fell on Hillary. Hillary immediately bled,
and was rushed to the hospital.

► What is the crime committed when the child

died?
► What is the crime committed when the child did
not die?
ART. 253 GIVING ASSISTANCE TO
SUICIDE
Acts punished
1. Assisting another to commit suicide, whether the suicide is consummated or not;
2. Lending his assistance to another to commit suicide to the extent of doing the killing
himself.

Giving assistance to suicide means giving means (arms, poison, etc.) or whatever manner
of positive and direct cooperation (intellectual aid, suggestions regarding the mode of
committing suicide, etc.).
RULES IN ART. 253

► If the offender lends his assistance to another to

the extent of doing the killing himself, he shall
suffer the penalty of reclusion temporal.
► If the suicide is not CONSUMMATED, the penalty
shall be arresto mayor.