Pretty was a campus beauty queen who, because of her looks and charms, attracted many suitors. Having decided that she would become a nun, Pretty turned down all her suitors. Guapo, one of her most persistent suitors, could not handle rejection and one night, decided to accost Pretty as she walked home. Together with Pogi, Guapo forced Pretty into his car and drove her to an abandoned warehouse where heand Pogi forced Pretty to dance for them. Later, the two took turns in raping her.After satisfying their lusts, Guapo and Pogi dropped her off at her house. (4%)
(A) What crime or crimes did Guapo and Pogi commit?
(B) Pretty, after the ordeal, decided to take her own life by hanging herself one hour after the rape. Would Guapo and Pogi be liable for Pretty’s death? Explain.
Suggested answer only. Not an official answer and not legal advice.
Guapo and Pogi committed Forcible Abduction with Rape and Rape in (A), but are not liable for Pretty's death in (B). Under Articles 48 and 342 of the RPC, forcible abduction is complexed with rape when used as a necessary means to commit
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Quick check
When is forcible abduction complexed with rape under Article 48 of the Revised Penal Code?
Forcible abduction is complexed with rape under Article 48 RPC when the abduction is a necessary means to execute the rape.
Why are Guapo and Pogi NOT criminally liable for the death of Pretty following her suicide?
Pretty's voluntary act of hanging herself constituted an efficient intervening cause that broke the chain of causation under Article 4(1) RPC.
What crime is committed when co-conspirators take turns raping an abducted victim after the initial complex crime?
Subsequent rapes committed after the complex crime of forcible abduction with rape constitute separate and distinct counts of rape.
What constitutes an 'efficient intervening cause' under Article 4(1) of the Revised Penal Code?
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How does conspiracy under Article 8 RPC affect the liability of offenders who take turns raping a victim?
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Learn more about these topics
1. Forcible Abduction Rape
Under Article 342 in relation to Article 48 of the Revised Penal Code, forcible abduction is complexed with rape when the abduction of a woman with lewd designs is used as a necessary means to commit rape. Where multiple acts of sexual assault occur after the abduction, the initial rape combines with the forcible abduction to form a single complex crime of forcible abduction with rape. Any subsequent rape committed by co-conspirators constitutes a separate, distinct crime of rape. All co-conspirators who participate in the abduction and sexual assault incur equal criminal liability as principals.
2. Proximate Cause Rule
Under Article 4, paragraph 1 of the Revised Penal Code, a person committing a felony is criminally liable for all the direct, natural, and logical consequences of his unlawful act. Proximate cause is that cause which, in natural and continuous sequence, unbroken by any efficient intervening cause, produces the injury or death. Where a victim commits suicide hours after being victimized by a crime, the voluntary and independent decision of the victim to end her life constitutes an efficient intervening cause that breaks the chain of causation, excluding the offenders from criminal liability for murder or homicide.
3. Principles of Conspiracy
Under Article 8 of the Revised Penal Code, conspiracy exists when two or more persons come to an agreement concerning the commission of a felony and decide to commit it. In sexual assault cases involving multiple perpetrators acting in concert, proof of express agreement is not required if their simultaneous and complementary physical acts demonstrate a unity of criminal purpose. Where offenders jointly abduct a victim and take turns committing rape, each conspirator is criminally responsible not only for his own individual acts of rape but also as a principal for the acts committed by his co-conspirator.