Criminal Law, Business and
Cyber Crimes with Torts
Module 4
PREPARED BY: ATTY. GINBER M. LUNA
Article 4 par. 1
The felony committed must be the proximate cause of the resulting
injury.
What is proximate cause?
Proximate cause is ”that cause, which, in natural and continuous
sequence, unbroken by any efficient intervening cause, produces
the injury, and without which the result would not have occurred.”
(Bataclan v. Medina, 102 PR, quoting 38 Am. Jur. 965)
Art. 4, par. 2 Impossible crimes
The commission of an impossible crime is indicative of criminal
propensity or criminal tendency of the part of the actor. Such person
is a potential criminal.
The penalty for impossible crime is found in Art. 59 of the RPC.
Requisites of impossible crime
1. That the act performed would be an offense against persons or
property;
2. That the act was done with evil intent;
3. That its accomplishment is inherently impossible, or that the
means employed is either inadequate or ineffectual;
4. That the act performed should not constitute a violation of
another provision of the RPC.
Important words and phrases in par. 2 of Art. 4
1. “Performing an act which would be an offense against persons or property.”
If the act performed would be an offense other than a felony against persons or
property, there is no impossible crime. That the act done was done with evil
intent.
2. “Were it not for the inherent impossibility of its accomplishment or on account
of the employment of inadequate or ineffectual means.” In impossible crime,
the act performed by the offender cannot produce an offense against persons
or property because: (1) the commission of the offense (against persons or
against property) is inherently impossible of accomplishment; or (2) the means
employed is either (a) inadequate or (b) ineffectual.
Cont.
a. “Inherent impossibility of its accomplishment.” The act intended by
the offender is by its nature one of impossible accomplishment,
either by legal impossibility or physical impossibility of
accomplishing the intended act.
b. “Employment of inadequate” means.
c. “Employment of ineffectual” means.
In impossible crime the act performed should not constitute a
violation of another provision of the RPC.
Purpose of the law in punishing the impossible
crime
- To suppress criminal propensity or criminal tendencies.
Objectively, the offender had not committed a felony, but
subjectively, he is a criminal.
Article 5. Duty of the court in connection with acts which should
be repressed but which are not covered by the law, and in cases of
excessive penalties.
Requisites of Art 5. par. 1 (trial of a criminal case)
1. The act committed by the accused appears not punishable by any law;
2. The court deems it proper to repress such act;
3. The court must render the proper decision by dismissing the case and
acquitting the accused;
4. The judge must then make a report to the President through the
Secretary of Justice, stating the reasons which induce him to believe
that the said act should be made the subject of penal legislation.
Requisites of Art 5. par. 2 (In cases of excessive penalties)
1. The court after trial finds the accused guilty;
2. The penalty provided by law and which the court imposes for the crime
committed appears to be clearly excessive, because: a) the accused acted
with lesser degree of malice, and/or b) there is no injury or the injury caused
is of lesser gravity;
3. The court should not suspend the execution of the sentence;
4. The judge should submit a statement to the President through the Secretary
of Justice, recommending executive clemency.
Art. 6. Consummate, frustrated, and attempted
felonies.
Consummated felony – when all the elements necessary for its execution and
accomplishment are present.
Frustrated felony – when the offender performs all the acts of execution which would
produce the felony as a consequence but which, nevertheless, do not produce it by reason
of causes independent of the will of the perpetrator.
Attempted felony – there is an attempt when the offender commences the commission of a
felony by overt acts, and does not perform all the acts of execution which should produce
the felony by reason of some cause or accident other than his own spontaneous desistance.
Development/Stages of crime
From the moment the culprit conceives the idea of committing a crime
up to the realization of the same, his act passes through certain stages.
These stages are: (1) internal acts; and (2) external acts.
1. Internal acts, such as mere ideas in the mind of a person, are not
punishable even if, had they been carried out, they would
constitute a crime.
2. External acts cover (a) preparatory acts; and (b) acts of execution.
Cont.
a. Preparatory acts – ordinarily they are not punishable, except
when the law provides for their punishment. Ex. Art. 304.
Possession of picklocks
b. Acts of execution – they are punishable under the RPC. The
stages of acts of execution – attempted, frustrated and
consummated.
Attempted Felony
Elements of attempted felony:
1. The offender commences the commission of the felony directly by
overt acts;
2. He does not perform all the acts of execution which should produce
the felony;
3. The offender’s acts is not stopped by his own spontaneous desistance;
4. The non-performance of all acts of execution was due to cause or
accident other than his own spontaneous desistance.
Important words and phrases in Art. 6.
1. “Commences the commission of a felony directly by overt acts.”
a. That there be external acts; and
b. Such external acts have direct connection with the crime
intended to be committed.
Cont.
Overt acts – is some physical activity or deed, indicating the
intention to commit a particular crime, more than a mere planning
or preparation, which if carried to its complete termination
following its natural course, without being frustrated by external
obstacles nor by the voluntary desistance of the perpetrator, will
logically and necessarily ripen into a concrete offense.
Cont.
1. Directly by overt acts. Only offenders who personally execute the commission of a crime
can be guilty of attempted felony. The word directly suggests that the offender must
commence the commission of the felony by taking direct part in the execution of the act.
2. Does not perform all the act of execution.
3. By some cause or accident.
4. Other than his own spontaneous desistance. If the person does not perform all the acts of
execution by reason of his own spontaneous desistance, there is no attempted felony. The
law does not punish him. Rationale: Sort of reward granted by law to those who, having
one foot on the verge of crime, heed the call of their conscience and return to the path of
righteousness. Desistance may be through fear or remorse.
Desistance
1. The desistance may be through fear or remorse.
2. The desistance should be made before all the acts of execution
are performed,
3. The desistance which exempts from criminal liability has
reference to the crime intended to be committed, and has no
reference to the crime actually committed by the offender before his
desistance.
Subjective phase of the offense
In attempt felony, the offender never passes the subjective phase of the offense.
Definition of subjective phase of the offense.
It is that portion of the acts constituting the crime, starting from the point where the offender
begins the commission of the crime to that point where he has still control over his acts,
including their (acts’) natural course.
If between these two points the offender is stopped by any cause outside of his own
voluntary desistance, the subjective phase has not been passed and it is an attempt. If he is
not so stopped but continues until he performs the last act, it is frustrated, provided the
crime is not produced. The acts then of the offender reached the objective phase of the
crime.
