While attending an Enhanced Community Quarantine barangay checkpoint, a barangay tanod confronted a resident for non-essential travel. Infuriated by the barangay tanod’s tone, the resident punched the tanod’s head. The barangay tanod fell, sustained brain hemorrhage, and died as a result. Charged with Homicide, the resident denies liability, arguing that there can be no conviction if there is no intent to cause the barangay tanod’s death. Is the resident’s defense tenable? Explain briefly
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No, the resident's defense is untenable. Under Article 4, paragraph 1 of the Revised Penal Code, criminal liability is incurred by any person committing a felony although the wrongful act done be different from that which he intended. In crimes of
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Quick check
Is an offender criminally liable for homicide if an unlawful punch causes the victim to fall and die of a brain hemorrhage?
Under Article 4(1) of the Revised Penal Code, criminal liability is incurred for all direct consequences of a felonious act.
What is the legal effect of an offender having no intention to commit so grave a wrong as that committed?
Lack of intent to commit so grave a wrong serves as a mitigating circumstance under Article 13(3) of the RPC.
How is proximate cause defined in Philippine criminal jurisprudence?
Proximate cause is the cause which in natural and continuous sequence produces the result without efficient intervening cause.
When does praeter intentionem apply to mitigate an offender's criminal liability?
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Does punching a person constitute a felonious act that triggers criminal liability under Article 4 of the RPC?
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Learn more about these topics
1. Article 4 Liability
Under Article 4, paragraph 1 of the Revised Penal Code, criminal liability is incurred by any person committing a felony although the wrongful act done be different from that which he intended. This provision establishes that an offender is criminally responsible for all the direct and natural consequences of a felonious act. Even if the resulting injury or death was not intended or foreseen, the perpetrator remains criminally liable for the ultimate outcome as long as the initial act committed was unlawful and felonious.
2. Proximate Cause Rule
Proximate cause is that cause which, in natural and continuous sequence, unbroken by any efficient intervening cause, produces the injury or death, and without which the result would not have occurred. When an unlawful blow or physical assault causes a victim to fall, sustain a fatal head injury, and die, the assault is the proximate cause of the death. The offender cannot escape liability by claiming that the death was an unintended or accidental consequence of the original unlawful physical assault.
3. Praeter Intentionem Mitigation
Under Article 13, paragraph 3 of the Revised Penal Code, praeter intentionem arises when the offender had no intention to commit so grave a wrong as that committed. This circumstance does not exculpate the accused from criminal liability nor convert homicide into mere physical injuries. Instead, lack of intent to kill operates exclusively as a mitigating circumstance that reduces the penalty imposed by the court, provided there is a notable disparity between the means employed and the fatal result.