Special Laws Related to Criminal Procedure

Rule 113
Republic of the Philippines
Congress of the Philippines
Metro Manila
Eighth Congress

Republic Act No. 7438

April 27, 1992

AN ACT DEFINING CERTAIN RIGHTS OF PERSON ARRESTED, DETAINED OR UNDER CUSTODIAL

INVESTIGATION AS WELL AS THE DUTIES OF THE ARRESTING, DETAINING AND
INVESTIGATING OFFICERS, AND PROVIDING PENALTIES FOR VIOLATIONS THEREOF
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the Philippines in Congress assembled::
Section 1. Statement of Policy. It is the policy of the Senate to value the dignity of every human being and
guarantee full respect for human rights.
Section 2. Rights of Persons Arrested, Detained or Under Custodial Investigation; Duties of Public Officers.
(a) Any person arrested detained or under custodial investigation shall at all times be assisted by counsel.
(b) Any public officer or employee, or anyone acting under his order or his place, who arrests, detains or
investigates any person for the commission of an offense shall inform the latter, in a language known to and
understood by him, of his rights to remain silent and to have competent and independent counsel, preferably
of his own choice, who shall at all times be allowed to confer privately with the person arrested, detained or
under custodial investigation. If such person cannot afford the services of his own counsel, he must be
provided with a competent and independent counsel by the investigating officer.
lawphi1

(c) The custodial investigation report shall be reduced to writing by the investigating officer, provided that
before such report is signed, or thumbmarked if the person arrested or detained does not know how to read
and write, it shall be read and adequately explained to him by his counsel or by the assisting counsel provided
by the investigating officer in the language or dialect known to such arrested or detained person, otherwise,
such investigation report shall be null and void and of no effect whatsoever.
(d) Any extrajudicial confession made by a person arrested, detained or under custodial investigation shall be
in writing and signed by such person in the presence of his counsel or in the latter's absence, upon a valid
waiver, and in the presence of any of the parents, elder brothers and sisters, his spouse, the municipal mayor,
the municipal judge, district school supervisor, or priest or minister of the gospel as chosen by him; otherwise,
such extrajudicial confession shall be inadmissible as evidence in any proceeding.
(e) Any waiver by a person arrested or detained under the provisions of Article 125 of the Revised Penal
Code, or under custodial investigation, shall be in writing and signed by such person in the presence of his
counsel; otherwise the waiver shall be null and void and of no effect.
(f) Any person arrested or detained or under custodial investigation shall be allowed visits by or conferences
with any member of his immediate family, or any medical doctor or priest or religious minister chosen by him
or by any member of his immediate family or by his counsel, or by any national non-governmental
organization duly accredited by the Commission on Human Rights of by any international non-governmental
organization duly accredited by the Office of the President. The person's "immediate family" shall include his
or her spouse, fianc or fiance, parent or child, brother or sister, grandparent or grandchild, uncle or aunt,
nephew or niece, and guardian or ward.
As used in this Act, "custodial investigation" shall include the practice of issuing an "invitation" to a person who is
investigated in connection with an offense he is suspected to have committed, without prejudice to the liability of the
"inviting" officer for any violation of law.

Section 3. Assisting Counsel. Assisting counsel is any lawyer, except those directly affected by the case, those
charged with conducting preliminary investigation or those charged with the prosecution of crimes.
The assisting counsel other than the government lawyers shall be entitled to the following fees;
(a) The amount of One hundred fifty pesos (P150.00) if the suspected person is chargeable with light
felonies;
lawphi1al f

(b) The amount of Two hundred fifty pesos (P250.00) if the suspected person is chargeable with less grave or
grave felonies;
(c) The amount of Three hundred fifty pesos (P350.00) if the suspected person is chargeable with a capital
offense.
The fee for the assisting counsel shall be paid by the city or municipality where the custodial investigation is
conducted, provided that if the municipality of city cannot pay such fee, the province comprising such
municipality or city shall pay the fee: Provided, That the Municipal or City Treasurer must certify that no
funds are available to pay the fees of assisting counsel before the province pays said fees.
In the absence of any lawyer, no custodial investigation shall be conducted and the suspected person can only be
detained by the investigating officer in accordance with the provisions of Article 125 of the Revised Penal Code.
Section 4. Penalty Clause. (a) Any arresting public officer or employee, or any investigating officer, who fails to
inform any person arrested, detained or under custodial investigation of his right to remain silent and to have
competent and independent counsel preferably of his own choice, shall suffer a fine of Six thousand pesos (P6,000.00)
or a penalty of imprisonment of not less than eight (8) years but not more than ten (10) years, or both. The penalty of
perpetual absolute disqualification shall also be imposed upon the investigating officer who has been previously
convicted of a similar offense.
The same penalties shall be imposed upon a public officer or employee, or anyone acting upon orders of such
investigating officer or in his place, who fails to provide a competent and independent counsel to a person
arrested, detained or under custodial investigation for the commission of an offense if the latter cannot afford
the services of his own counsel.
(b) Any person who obstructs, prevents or prohibits any lawyer, any member of the immediate family of a
person arrested, detained or under custodial investigation, or any medical doctor or priest or religious minister
chosen by him or by any member of his immediate family or by his counsel, from visiting and conferring
privately with him, or from examining and treating him, or from ministering to his spiritual needs, at any hour
of the day or, in urgent cases, of the night shall suffer the penalty of imprisonment of not less than four (4)
years nor more than six (6) years, and a fine of four thousand pesos (P4,000.00).
lawphi1

The provisions of the above Section notwithstanding, any security officer with custodial responsibility over any
detainee or prisoner may undertake such reasonable measures as may be necessary to secure his safety and prevent his
escape.
Section 5. Repealing Clause. Republic Act No. No. 857, as amended, is hereby repealed. Other laws, presidential
decrees, executive orders or rules and regulations, or parts thereof inconsistent with the provisions of this Act are
repealed or modified accordingly.
Section 6. Effectivity. This Act shall take effect fifteen (15) days following its publication in the Official Gazette or
in any daily newspapers of general circulation in the Philippines.
Approved: April 27, 1992.

lawphi1

Art. III Sec. 12 of 1987 Constitution

Section 12.
1. Any person under investigation for the commission of an offense shall have the right to be informed of his
right to remain silent and to have competent and independent counsel preferably of his own choice. If the

person cannot afford the services of counsel, he must be provided with one. These rights cannot be waived
except in writing and in the presence of counsel.
2. No torture, force, violence, threat, intimidation, or any other means which vitiate the free will shall be used
against him. Secret detention places, solitary, incommunicado, or other similar forms of detention are
prohibited.
3. Any confession or admission obtained in violation of this or Section 17 hereof shall be inadmissible in
evidence against him.
4. The law shall provide for penal and civil sanctions for violations of this Section as well as compensation to
the rehabilitation of victims of torture or similar practices, and their families.

Rule 126
Art III. Sec. 2 of 1987 Constitution
Section 2. The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects against unreasonable
searches and seizures of whatever nature and for any purpose shall be inviolable, and no search warrant or warrant of
arrest shall issue except upon probable cause to be determined personally by the judge after examination under oath or
affirmation of the complainant and the witnesses he may produce, and particularly describing the place to be searched
and the persons or things to be seized.

Rule 110
Chapter Four
CIRCUMSTANCE WHICH AGGRAVATE CRIMINAL LIABILITY
Art. 14. Aggravating circumstances. The following are aggravating
circumstances:
1. That advantage be taken by the offender of his public position.
2. That the crime be committed in contempt or with insult to the public
authorities.
3. That the act be committed with insult or in disregard of the respect due the
offended party on account of his rank, age, or sex, or that is be committed in the
dwelling of the offended party, if the latter has not given provocation.
4. That the act be committed with abuse of confidence or obvious
ungratefulness.
5. That the crime be committed in the palace of the Chief Executive or in his
presence, or where public authorities are engaged in the discharge of their duties,
or in a place dedicated to religious worship.
6. That the crime be committed in the night time, or in an uninhabited place, or
by a band, whenever such circumstances may facilitate the commission of the
offense.
chanroble s virtual law library

chanrobles virtual law library

chanroble s virtual law library

chanroble s virtual law library

chanrobles virtual law library

chanroble s virtual law library

Whenever more than three armed malefactors shall have acted together in the
commission of an offense, it shall be deemed to have been committed by a band.

chanroble s

virtual law library

7. That the crime be committed on the occasion of a conflagration, shipwreck,

earthquake, epidemic or other calamity or misfortune.
8. That the crime be committed with the aid of armed men or persons who insure
or afford impunity.
9. That the accused is a recidivist.
A recidivist is one who, at the time of his trial for one crime, shall have been
previously convicted by final judgment of another crime embraced in the same
title of this Code.
10. That the offender has been previously punished by an offense to which the
law attaches an equal or greater penalty or for two or more crimes to which it
attaches a lighter penalty.
11. That the crime be committed in consideration of a price, reward, or promise.
chanroble s virtual law library

chanrobles virtual law library

chanrobles virtual law library

chanrobles virtual law library

chanrobles virtual law library

chanroble s virtual

la w library

12. That the crime be committed by means of inundation, fire, poison, explosion,
stranding of a vessel or international damage thereto, derailment of a locomotive,
or by the use of any other artifice involving great waste and ruin.
13. That the act be committed with evidence premeditation.
14. That the craft, fraud or disguise be employed.
15. That advantage be taken of superior strength, or means be employed to
weaken the defense.
16. That the act be committed with treachery (alevosia).
There is treachery when the offender commits any of the crimes against the
person, employing means, methods, or forms in the execution thereof which tend
directly and specially to insure its execution, without risk to himself arising from
the defense which the offended party might make.
17. That means be employed or circumstances brought about which add ignominy
to the natural effects of the act.
18. That the crime be committed after an unlawful entry.
There is an unlawful entry when an entrance of a crime a wall, roof, floor, door, or
window be broken.
20. That the crime be committed with the aid of persons under fifteen years of
age or by means of motor vehicles, motorized watercraft, airships, or other
similar means. (As amended by RA 5438).
21. That the wrong done in the commission of the crime be deliberately
augmented by causing other wrong not necessary for its commissions.
chanrobles virtual law library

chanroble s virtual law library

chanroble s virtual law library

chanroble s virtual law library

chanroble s virtual law library

chanroble s virtual law library

chanroble s virtual law library

chanrobles virtual law library

chanrobles virtual law library

chanroble s virtual law library