1. By conditional pardon
2. By commutation of sentence
3. For good conduct, allowances which the culprit may earn while he is serving sentence
4. By parole
5. By probation
Important: The Supreme Court ruled that re-election to public office is not one of the grounds by which criminal liability is extinguished. This is only true in administrative cases but not in criminal cases.
F.1. Prescription of Crimes; Prescription of
Violations of Special Laws (Act No. 3326)
131 Definition: The forfeiture or loss of the right of the State to prosecute the offender, after the lapse of a certain period of time.
General rule: Prescription of the crime begins on the day the crime was committed.
Exception: The crime was concealed, not public, in which case, the prescription thereof would only commence from the time the offended party or the government learns of the commission of the crime.
i. Prescriptive Periods of Crimes
1. Crimes punishable bydeath, reclusion perpetua or reclusion temporal
20 years 2. Afflictive penalties 15 years
3. Correctional penalties Note: Those punishable by arresto mayor b) Fine is correctional c) Fine is light
Note: Subsidiary penalty for nonpayment not considered in determining the period
Note: When fine is an alternative penalty higher than the other penalty which is by imprisonment, prescription of the crime is based on the fine.
15 years 10 years 2 months
Prescriptive periods under special laws and municipal ordinances (Act 3763, amending Act 3326)
Offenses punished only by fine or imprisonment for not more than one month or both
1 year Imprisonment for more than one
month, but less than two years 4 years Imprisonment for two years but
less than six years 8 years Imprisonment for six years or
more 12 years
Offenses under Internal Revenue
Law 5 years
Violations of municipal ordinances
2 months Violations of the regulations or
conditions of certificate of convenience by the Public Service Commission
2 months
Note: Not applicable where the special law provides for its own prescriptive period
Computation of Prescription of Offenses (Art. 91) 1. Commences to run from the day on which
the crime is discovered by the offended party, the authorities or their agents.
2. Interrupted by the filing of complaint or information
3. It shall commence to run again when such proceedings terminate without the accused being convicted or acquitted, or unjustifiably stopped for any reason not imputable to the accused.
Note: Termination must be FINAL as to amount to a jeopardy that would bar a subsequent prosecution.
4. The term of prescription shall not run when the offender is absent from the Philippine archipelago.
5. For continuing crimes, prescriptive period cannot begin to run because the crime does not end.
132
ii. Prescription of penalties
Definition: The loss or forfeiture of the right of the government to execute the final sentence after the lapse of a certain period of time.
Difference between Prescription of Crime and Prescription of the Penalty
Prescription of crime Prescription of the penalty
Forfeiture of the right of the State to prosecute after a lapse of a certain time
Forfeiture of the right to execute the final sentence after the lapse of a certain time Prescriptive Periods of Penalties
Death and reclusion perpetua 20 years Other afflictive penalties 15 years Correctional penalties
Note: If arresto mayor
10 years 5 years
Light penalties 1 year
iii. Computation of Prescription of Penalties (Art. 93)
Elements:
1. Penalty is imposed by final judgment 2. Convict evaded service of sentence by
escaping during the term of his sentence
3. The convict who has escaped from prison has not given himself up, or been captured, or gone to a foreign country with which we have no extradition treaty, or committed another crime
4. The penalty has prescribed because of the lapse of time from the date of the evasion of service of the sentence by the convict.
Period commences to run from the date when the culprit evaded the service of sentence.
Del Castillo v. Torrecampo (2002)
"Escape" in legal parlance and for purposes of
Articles 93 and 157 of the RPC means unlawful departure of prisoner from the limits of his custody. Clearly, one who has not been committed to prison cannot be said to have escaped therefrom.
Prescription is interrupted when:
The convict gives himself up.
The convict Is captured.
The convict goes to a foreign country with which the Philippines has no extradition treaty.
The convict commits any crime before the expiration of the period of prescription.
Question: What happens in cases where our government has extradition treaty with another country but the crime is not included in the treaty?
Answer: It would interrupt the running of the prescriptive period.
Question: What is the effect of the acceptance of the convict of a conditional pardon?
Answer: It would interrupt the running of the prescriptive period.
Question: What happens if the culprit is captured but he evades again the service of his sentence?
Answer: The period of prescription that ran during the evasion is not forfeited. The period of prescription that has run in his favor should be taken into account.
F.2. Pardon by Offended Party
Art. 23. Effect of pardon by the offended party. — A pardon of the offended party does not extinguish criminal action except as provided in Article 344 of this Code; but civil liability with regard to the interest of the injured party is extinguished by his express waiver.
133 This article states the extent of a pardon made by the offended party. Under this article, a pardon does not extinguish the criminal liability of an offender except for cases under Article 344 (Prosecution of the crimes of adultery, concubinage, seduction, abduction, rape and acts of lasciviousness).
However, the civil liability with regard to the interest of the injured party is extinguished.