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    Criminal Law Ex Post Facto Law

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    Jam Mua Macalanggan
    An ex post facto law is a law that retroactively changes the legal consequences or status of actions that were committed or relationships that existed before the enactment of the law. Specifically, an ex post facto law (1) criminalizes actions that were legal when committed; (2) increases the punishment for a crime after its commission; or (3) deprives someone of a defense or lesser punishment that was available at the time the action was committed. For a law to be considered ex post facto, it must be retroactive and penal in nature by imposing penalties for past acts. Procedural laws that do not inflict greater punishment are generally not considered ex post facto.

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    Criminal Law Ex Post Facto Law

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    Jam Mua Macalanggan
    50 views3 pages
    An ex post facto law is a law that retroactively changes the legal consequences or status of actions that were committed or relationships that existed before the enactment of the law. Specifically, an ex post facto law (1) criminalizes actions that were legal when committed; (2) increases the punishment for a crime after its commission; or (3) deprives someone of a defense or lesser punishment that was available at the time the action was committed. For a law to be considered ex post facto, it must be retroactive and penal in nature by imposing penalties for past acts. Procedural laws that do not inflict greater punishment are generally not considered ex post facto.

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    Philippine Criminal Law

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    Criminal Law Ex Post facto law

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    An ex post facto law is a law that retroactively changes the legal consequences or status of actions that were committed or relationships that existed before the enactment of the law. Specifically, an ex post facto law (1) criminalizes actions that were legal when committed; (2) increases the punishment for a crime after its commission; or (3) deprives someone of a defense or lesser punishment that was available at the time the action was committed. For a law to be considered ex post facto, it must be retroactive and penal in nature by imposing penalties for past acts. Procedural laws that do not inflict greater punishment are generally not considered ex post facto.

    Copyright:

    © All Rights Reserved
    Download as PDF, TXT or read online from Scribd
    Download as pdf or txt
    50 views3 pages

    Criminal Law Ex Post Facto Law

    Uploaded by

    Jam Mua Macalanggan
    An ex post facto law is a law that retroactively changes the legal consequences or status of actions that were committed or relationships that existed before the enactment of the law. Specifically, an ex post facto law (1) criminalizes actions that were legal when committed; (2) increases the punishment for a crime after its commission; or (3) deprives someone of a defense or lesser punishment that was available at the time the action was committed. For a law to be considered ex post facto, it must be retroactive and penal in nature by imposing penalties for past acts. Procedural laws that do not inflict greater punishment are generally not considered ex post facto.

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    of 3

    Political Law

    Notes
     

    What is an ex post facto law?


    No ex post facto law or bill of attainder shall be enacted. (Art. III, Sec. 22, 1987 Philippine
    Constitution)

    What is an ex post facto law?

    An ex post facto law has been defined as one:

    1. which makes an action done before the passing of the law and which was innocent when
    done, criminal, and punishes such action; or 
    2. which aggravates a crime or makes it greater than it was when committed; or 
    3. which changes the punishment and inflicts a greater punishment than the law annexed to the
    crime when it was committed; or 
    4. which alters the legal rules of evidence and receives less or different testimony than the law
    required at the time of the commission of the offense in order to convict the defendant.
    5. which assumes to regulate civil rights and remedies only but in effect imposes a penalty or
    deprivation of a right which when done was lawful; or 
    6. that which deprives a person accused of a crime of some lawful protection to which he has
    become entitled, such as the protection of a former conviction or acquittal, or a proclamation
    of amnesty. (Salvador vs. Mapa, G.R. No. 135080, November 28, 2007)

    Characteristics of ex post facto law:

    1. It refers to criminal matters; 


    2. It is retroactive in application; and 
    3. It works to the prejudice of the accused

    Cases:

    ● Ex post facto law, generally, prohibits retrospectivity of penal laws.  Penal laws are those acts of
    the Legislature which prohibit certain acts and establish penalties for their violations; or those
    that define crimes, treat of their nature, and provide for their punishment. (Salvador vs. Mapa)

    ● The subject  administrative and memorandum orders  clearly do not come within the shadow of
    this definition. Administrative Order No. 13 creates the Presidential Ad Hoc Fact-Finding Committee
    on Behest Loans, and provides for its composition and functions. It does not mete out penalty for
    the act of granting behest loans. Memorandum Order No. 61 merely provides a frame of reference
    for determining behest loans. Not being penal laws, Administrative Order No. 13 and Memorandum
    Order No. 61 cannot be characterized as ex post facto laws. There is, therefore, no basis for the
    Ombudsman to rule that the subject administrative and memorandum orders are ex post
    facto. (Salvador vs. Mapa)

    ● R.A. 8249, which defines the jurisdiction of the Sandiganbayan, is not an ex post facto law, because
    it is not a penal law. Penal laws are those acts of the Legislature which prohibit certain acts and
    establish penalties for their violations, or those that define crimes, treat of their nature, and provide
    for their punishment. R.A. 8249 is clearly a procedural statute, i.e., one which prescribes rules of
    procedure by which courts applying laws of all kinds can properly administer justice. Not being a
    penal law, the retroactive application of R.A. 8249 cannot be challenged as unconstitutional. The
    contention that the right of the accused to a two-tiered appeal under R.A. 7975 has been diluted by 
    R.A. 8249 has been rejected by the court several times considering that the right to appeal is not a
    natural right but statutory in nature that can be regulated by law.    (Lacson vs. Executive
    Secretary, G.R. No. 128096. January 20, 1999)

    ● P.D. 1990 is not ex post facto because like the Probation Law that it amends, it is not penal in
    character, and it applies only to an accused who has been convicted after the effectivity of the P.D.
    (Fajardo v. Court of Appeals, G.R. No. 128508, February 1, 1999)

    ● The retroactive application of the Treaty of Extradition (between the Philippines and Australia)
    does not violate the prohibition against ex post facto laws, because the Treaty is neither a piece of
    criminal legislation nor a criminal procedural statute; it merely provided for the extradition of
    persons wanted for offenses already committed at the time the treaty was ratified. (Wright v. Court
    of Appeals, 235 SCRA 341)

    ● The Anti-Subversion Act was held not to be an ex post facto law, because the prohibition applied
    only to acts committed “after the approval of the Act”. (People v. Ferrer, 43 SCRA 381)

    ● The imposition of back taxes on the property of the petitioner does not violate the constitutional
    prohibition against ex post facto laws.  (Sesbreno v. Central Board of Assessment Appeals, 270 SCRA
    360)

    ● The amendatory law to RA 3019 imposing suspension pendente life of public officers accused of
    offenses involving fraudulent use of public funds, was held not to be an ex post facto law, because
    the suspension was not punitive, but merely preventive. (Bayot v. Sandiganbayan, 128 SCRA 383)

    ● The judge cannot, motu propio, initiate the dismissal and subsequently dismiss a criminal
    information or complaint without any motion to that effect being filed by the accused based on the
    alleged violation of the latter’s right against ex post facto law and double jeopardy. Every law carries
    with it the presumption of constitutionality until otherwise declared by the Supreme Court, and
    lower courts may not pass upon the constitutionality of a statute or rule nor declare it void unless
    directly assailed in an appropriate action. Since neither the private respondent nor the Solicitor
    General challenged the validity of Central Bank Circular No. 960, it was error for the lower court to
    declare the same ex post facto. (People v. Judge Nitafan, G.R. Nos. 107964-66, February 1, 1999)

    Examples of ex post facto law:

    ● RA 1379, which provides forfeiture in favor of the State of any property illegally obtained by a
    public officer, partakes the nature of a penalty that is criminal or penal. Hence, it may not be given
    retroactive effect. (Katigbak vs. Solicitor-General, G.R. No. L-19328, December 22, 1989)

    ● The provision of BP 195, amending Sec. 11, RA3019 (Anti-Graft and Corrupt Practices Act), which
    would increase from 10 to 15 years the prescriptive period for the offenses punished therein, cannot
    be given retroactive effect, as it would then be an ex post facto law. (People v. Sandiganbayan, 211
    SCRA 241)

    Read:

    Fajardo vs. CA Case Digest

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