CHAPTER IV

SOCIOLOGY OF LAW
Sociology of Law is one of the principal divisions of criminology. It is an attempt at
scientific analysis of conditions under which criminal laws develop as a consequence of
a behavior of mankind for the good and welfare of the state, and of the maintenance of
peace and order and tranquility among citizens and any person sojourning therein.
The present penal code commonly known as Revised Penal Code, enacted in
December 1930, is a mere retouching of the Spanish Penal Code of 1890, which in turn
was based on the early Spanish Penal Code of 1843. It is thus seen that the present
penal code is at least 100 years old. As compared to the Spanish Penal Code of 1930, it
has undergone important changes of orientation or structure.
The main criterion of the present penal code is that the basis of criminal liability is
human free will and the purpose of penalty is retribution. To the classicist, and specially
the framers of the Spanish Penal Code of 1870, man is essentially a moral creature with
absolutely having a free will to choose between good and evil. They assert that man
should only be adjudged and held accountable for wrongful acts so long as freewill
appears unimpaired. In working out this this theory; the Peal Code of 1870 placed more
stress upon the effects or results of the felonious acts rather than upon the man-criminal
himself, and endeavored to establish a mechanical and direct proportion between crime
and penalty. However, eventually, the classical method of considering the offender as an
abstract being, and of prefixing for him, through a series of hard and fast rules, a great
multitude of penalties with scant regard to the human element found stubborn and severe
critics in the persons of Dr. Cesare Lombroso and Professor Rafael Garofalo and Enrico
Ferri, who were the forerunners and founders of the positivist school of criminology.
The new system of thought radically deviates from the classical school in the
connection of crime and of the criminal. To the positivist, freewill is a myth, a figment the
imagination or at least a debatable matter. The positivist hold that man is subdued
occasionally by a strange and morbid phenomenon which constrains him to do wrong in
spite of or contrary to his volition. It is for this reason that the central idea of this thinking
is the defense of the community from antisocial activities, whether actual or potential,
against the morbid types of man who is called a “socially dangerous person”. To forestall
the social danger and to achieve social defense, the positivist philosophy has thus chosen
a different path. Premised upon the proposition that man is primary, while the deed is only
secondary, the new school takes the view that crime is essentially a social and a natural
phenomenon and as such, it cannot be treated and checked by the application od
abstract principles of ;aw and jurisprudence nor by the imposition of a punishment fixed
and determined a priori; rather, through the enforcement of individual measures in each
particular case after a thorough, personal and individual investigation conducted by a
competent body od psychiatrists and social scientists.
 On the other hand, to look upon each antisocial act as the pure and simple
manifestation of an influence or force which is entirely independent from human freewill,
and to make the penal sanction rest upon no other consideration than the rightful
character of dangerousness of the subject would create the absurdity of discarding every
vestige of ethics in determining the innocence or guilt of an accused and of entrusting the
administration of criminal justice to social scientists rather than to trained and professional
jurists.
After a deliberate and carful study of the vast field of criminal science, the
Commission came to the conclusion that no particular school of thought or theory could
claim perfection and monopoly of the true and rightful approach toward the administration
of criminal justice. To adhere entirely to the idea of moral balance and retribution; to
assess retribution by means of mechanical balance, attempting to measure beforehand
the punishment or repression in terms of years, months and days, and to lay stress upon
the act rather than upon the actor, as is done by the classical penal code of 1870, and
the existing Revised Penal Code of 1870, and the existing penal code would make one
play the role od physician who claims to be able to cure all ills with a stereotyped
prescriptions , without regard to the peculiar and personal conditions of the patients.
Whatever the validity or force there may be in the theory of morbid influence upon
a human being, it is undisputed that there is such a thing as justice as the base of man’s
conscience which demands that evil be condemned and good be rewarded.

BRIEF HISTORY OF THE PHILPPINE CRIMINAL LAWS

(Before and during the Code of Kalantiao)
Before the code of Kalantiao was promulgated in 1433, the People of Pre-Spanish
Philippines only had a customary ad unwritten laws. Some of the most striking laws
promulgated during this period provided for were:
• Due respect to elders and parents
• Strict obedience of sons to their parents
• Strict fulfillment of contact and equality of husband and wife both socially and in
the control of their property.
With the promulgation of code of Kalantiao in 1433, the penal laws were made severe
and extensive. According to the Code, the penalties for felonies and other
misdemeanors were death, incineration, mutilation of fingers, slavery, flagellation,
being bitten by ants, swimming under water for a fixed time and other discretionary
penalties. The code likewise provided severe punishment to men who were cruel to
their wives. Husbands who maltreated innocent wives were sentenced to death.
Adultery, as well as the contracting marriage to very young girls, was also severely
punished.
The following are some of the most salient features of the Code of Kalantiao:
1. Ye shall not kill; neither shall ye steal; neither shall ye hurt the aged; lest ye incur
the danger of death. all those who infringed this order shall be condemned to death
by being drowned with stones in the river, or in boiling water.
2. Ye shall obey. Let all obey. Let all your debts with headmen be met punctually. He
who does not obey shall receive for the first time one hundred lashes. He who does
obey shall receive for the first time one hundred lashes.
3. Who does not comply with, obey, and observe this order shall be condemned to
swim for three hours (for the first time), and for the second time, to be beaten to death
with sharp thorns or for the third time, shall be lacerated with thorns.
4. Ye shall obey; he who makes exchanges for food, let it be always done in
accordance with his work.
5. He who dos not comply, shall beaten for one hour, he who repeats the offense shall
be exposed for one day among ants.
6. Slavery of doam (certain period of time) shall be suffered those who steal away the
women of the head-man; by him who keeps ill-tempered dogs that bite the head-man;
by him who burns the fields of another.
7. All those, shall be beaten for two days, who sing while travelling by night; kill the
bird mana-ol; tear the documents belonging to headmen. . . or mock the dead.
8. They shall be burned; those who by their strength, cunning have mocked at and
escaped punishment; or who killed young boys; or try to steal away the women of the
agorangs (old men).

THE PHILOSOPHY OF CRIMINAL LAWS

The main criterion of the criminal law is that the basis of criminality is human free
will and the purpose of penalty is retribution. This system radically deviates from the
classical school in the conception of crime and of the criminals. To the positivist, free
will is myth, a figment of the imagination or at least, a debatable matter. The positivists
hold that man is subdued occasionally by a strange and morbid phenomenon which
constrains him to do wrong, inspite of or contrary to his own volition. It is for this reason
that the central idea of all positivist thinking is the defense of the community from
antisocial activities, whether actual or potential, against the morbid type of man who
is called a “socially dangerous person”. Therefore, the conclusion is that no particular
school of thought or theory could claim perfection and monopoly of the true and rightful
approach toward the administration of criminal justice.
 CHARACTERISTICS OF CRIMINAL LAW
1. GENERALITY – it is binding to all persons who reside and sojourn in the Philippine
Territory. Incidentally, this general characteristic of criminal law is not applicable to the
following instances:
• Treatise and laws of preferential application
• Under the principles of public international law
2. TERRITORIALITY – It undertakes to punish crimes committed within the Philippine
Territory. Except for the following:
• Should commit an offense while on a Philippine ship or airship;
• Should forge or counterfeit any coin or currency of the Philippines or obligations
and securities issued by the Government of the Philippines;
• Should be liable for acts connected with the introduction into the Philippines of the
obligations and securities mentioned in the receding number;
• While being public officers or employees, should commit an offense in the exercise
of their functions;
• Should commit any of the crimes against national security and the law of nations,
defined in Title One of Book two of this Code. (Article 2, Revised Penal Code)
3. PROSPECTIVITY- a penal law cannot make an act punishable in a manner in which it
was not punishable when it was committed. This characteristic is not applicable whenever
a new statute dealing with crime establishes conditions more lenient or favorable to the
accused. But this exception has no application:
• Where the law is expressly made inapplicable to pending actions or exisiting
causes of action
• Where the offender is a habitual criminal under Rule 5 of Article 62, of the Revised
Penal Code.
ELEMENTS OF CRIME
Any act or omission is considered a crime if the following elements are present:
1. Act or Omission- acts are positive while omissions are negative.
2. Act or omission be voluntary- in order that a person maybe criminally liable for it.
Voluntariness in turn, presupposes freedom of the will, intelligence and intent. Hence,
there is no freedom of the will, intelligence, and intent. Hence, there is no freedom of the
will if one is impelled by an irresistible force, nor is there intelligence when the act is
committed during insanity and there is no intent when the occurrence is the result of
unavoidable accident.
3. Act or omission must be punishable by law.
 CHAPTER V
INTRODUCTION TO LAW ENFORCEMENT AND CRIMINAL INVESTIGATION

Fundamentals of criminal investigation

Investigation
• Systematic examination of facts and circumstances.
• Search for truthful or factual information
• It was derived from the latin word “vestigare” which means to track or to trace or t
probe.
Criminal Investigation
• A lawful search for people and things useful in reconstructing circumstances of a
crime and the mental state accompanying it.
• An art which deals with the identity and location of the offender and provide
evidence of his guilt in a criminal proceeding.
Criminal Investigation as an Art
It is an art because it is not governed by rigid rules or fixed legal procedures but
most often based on intuition and sometimes by chance.
Criminal Investigation as a Science
It is a science in the sense that it applies technical knowledge on forensic sciences
in identifying, locating, collecting, processing or evaluating physical evidence.
6 Cardinal Points in Criminal Investigation
1. What offense has been committed?
2. Where was the offense committed?
3. Who committed the offense?
4. When was the offense committed?
5. Why was the offense committed?
6. How was the offense committed?
Importance of Criminal Investigation
1. It is pat of understanding the problem on crimes and criminals and provide for the
solutions in crime prevention.
2. It helps the five pillars of the criminal justice system in recognizing and identifying
criminals and provides clues or information in promoting social justice.
 3. It is an aid in enforcing the laws and the protection of lives and properties.
TOOLS IN CRIMINAL INVESTIGATION
1. INFORMATION- data gathered by an investigator from various sources such as
persons including the victim himself and from public records, private records, and
modus operandi file.
2. INTERVIEW- friendly and simple questioning of a person who is willing to divulge
information.
3. INTERROGATION- It is the skillful and vigorous questioning of a person who is
willing to divulge information.
4. INSTRUMENTATION- It is the scientific examination of real evidence, application
of instrument and methods of physical sciences in crime detection.

THE GOLDEN RULE OF CRIMINAL INVESTIGATION

“Thou shall not touch, move nor alter anything in the crime scene unless it is
properly photographed, measured, and sketched or otherwise preserved so as not
to destroy or contaminate the important criminal things”.

THE OBJECTIVES OF CRIMINAL INVESTIGATION

The objectives of criminal investigations are:

1. Detect crime
2. Locate and identify suspects in crime
3. Locate, document, and preserve evidence in crime.
4. Arrest suspects in crime
5. Recover stolen property
6. Prepare sound criminal cases for prosecution

Three-Fold Aim of Criminal Investigation (As cited in the book of Tradio)

The collection of facts to accomplish a three-fold aim:

1. To identify the guilty party.

2. To locate the guilty party and
3. To provide evidence of his guilt

PHASES OF CRIMINAL INVESTIGATION

The investigation of criminal offenses by the police can be divided into three
general phases:

1. The Preliminary Investigation/Initial Investigation

In most situations this precursory investigative phase is known as the preliminary
investigation Generally, the term preliminary investigation is defined as an initial inquiry
by officers to establish facts and circumstances of a suspected crime and to preserve any
evidence related to that crime.
2. In-Depth Investigation/Continuing Investigation
In-Depth or continuing Investigation encompasses the identification and apprehension of
the offender and full development of the case.

3. Concluding Investigation
In every phase of investigation a terminal point should always be reached. After the entire
extensive, complicated and vigorous search for justice where the investigator is directly
involved comes the laying of conclusions. A time to see whether case be suspended for
insufficient evidence, dismissal of case due to inadmissible evidence or a case which will
lead to a successfully concluded and prepared for prosecution. Thus, all of these efforts
are included in Concluding Investigation that is the last phase of Criminal Investigation.

INTRODUCTION TO LAW ENFORCEMENT ADMINISTRATION

Definition of terms

❖ Police
- The agency of the community or government that is responsible for enforcing
the law, maintaining public order and preventing and detecting crimes.
- The act of maintain discipline or ensuring that the rules must be observed.
(Encarta Word English Dictionary)
- It is the organization of armed men which is actually an institution that is
capable of exercising legally mandated duties to enforce the law, maintain
public order, and detect or prevent crimes.

❖ Organization
- A group of individuals working towards the fulfillment of common goals and
objectives.
- It is the structure of individual and functions into a productive relationship.
- An association of human beings to obtain a specific goal or objective.

❖ POLICE ORGANIZATION
- A number of police units systematically arranged for some purpose or objective.
- A structured group of highly trained personnel dealt with achieving the following
goals and objectives

Goals:
1. To protect lives and properties
2. To ensure public safety
3. To maintain peace and order

Objectives
1. To attain effectiveness in the enforcement of law and efficiency of law enforcers.
2. To attain low crime volume and crime rate.
 3. To attain a maximum degree of solution and criminal conviction of law violators.
4. to attain a maximum degree in the protection of lives and properties.

❖ Administration
- The determination of objectives and major policies of an organization.

❖ Police Administration
- An organizational process concerned with the implementation of the objectives
and plans, and internal operating efficiency of the police organization. (Timpac,
2013)
- Otherwise known as police in action; the cooperative human effort to achieve
the purposes of the Criminal Justice System.
- It also refers to the study of processes and conditions on law enforcement as
a pillar of the Criminal Justice System.

What are the different laws concerning the creation of the PNP?

✓ R.A. 4864 (Police Act of 1966)

This act served as the legal guidepost in initiating and undertaking at national level,
much needed reforms that resulted to a considerable improvement in police performance
and efficiency.

✓ PD 765
The Integrated National Police was established and constituted, composed of the
Philippine Constabulary as the nucleus and the Integrated Police Force as components
under the Department of National Defense.

✓ R.A. 6975
- RA 6975 is otherwise known as DILG Act of 1990.
- It was signed into law on December 13,1990.
- It paved the way for the creation of the following agencies: Philippine National
Police (PNP), Bureau of Fire Protection (BFP), Bureau of Jail Management and
Penology (BJMP), and Philippine Public Safety College (PPSC).

✓ RA 8551
- The PNP Reform and Reorganization Act of 1998.
- It was signed into law on February 25, 1998
- It provides for the reorganization of the Philippine National Police (PNP) which
is national in scope and civilian in character.

Fundamental Theories of Police Service

1. The Continental Theory – In these theory policemen are considered as servants of
the higher authorities, hence they only served the interest of the few.
2. The Home Rule Theory – Policemen are considered as servant of the community,
who depend for the effectiveness of their functions upon the express wishes of the people.
Concepts of Police Service
1. Old Concept – Under this concept, punishment is the sole instrument of crime control.
The yardstick of efficiency of the police is more on arrest.
2. Modern Concept – Under this philosophy, the yardstick of efficiency of the police is
the absence of crime.

CHAPTER VI

INTRODUCTION TO THE PHILIPPINE CRIMINAL JUSTICE SYTEM

Criminal Justice System

The Criminal Justice System (CJS) is the machinery which society uses in the
prevention and control of crime. The process is the totality of the activities of law
enforcers, prosecutors, defense lawyers, judges and corrections personnel, as well as
those of the mobilized community in crime prevention and control.

Major components of the CJS?

Law Enforcement
Prosecution
Courts
Corrections
Mobilized Community

Functions of the major components of the CJS?

To prevent and control the commission of crime;

To enforce the law;
To safeguard lives, individual rights, and properties;
To investigate, apprehend, prosecute and sentence those who violated the rules of
society; and,
To rehabilitate the convicts and reintegrate them into the community as law-abiding
citizens.

Operation of the CJS

The first four pillars, i.e., law enforcement, prosecution, courts, and corrections,
pertain to the traditional agencies vested with the official responsibility in dealing with
crime or in crime control. The community pillar is the most broad-based. Under the
concept of a participative criminal justice system in the Philippines, public and private
agencies, as well as citizens, become a part of the CJS when they become involved in
issues and participate in activities related to crime prevention and control.
 PILLARS OF THE CRIMINAL JUSTICE SYTEM

1. Law Enforcement Pillar (Prime mover)

- It is the prime mover of the Criminal Justice System
- An agency of the government responsible in maintenance of peace and order,
protection of lives and properties, ensure pubic safety, ensure public safety, enforcement
of laws and ordinances, apprehension of offenders, and investigation of cases.
-The first pillar consists mainly of the Philippine National Police (PNP). The work
of the PNP is the prevention and control of crimes, enforcement of laws, and effecting the
arrest of offenders, including the conduct of lawful searches and seizures to gather
necessary evidences so that a complaint may be filed with the Prosecutor’s Office.

2. Prosecution Pillar
- It is the process whereby accusations are brought before the court of justice.
-The second pillar takes care of the investigation of the complaint. In the rural
areas, the PNP may file the complaint with the inferior courts (i.e. the Municipal Trial
Courts or the Municipal Circuit Trial Courts). The judges of these inferior courts act as
quasi-prosecutors only for the purpose of the preliminary investigation. Once a prima
facie case has been determined, the complaint is forwarded to the City or Provincial
Prosecutor’s Office which will review the case. When the complaint has been approved
for filing with the Regional Trial Court, a warrant of arrest for the accused will be issued
by the court once the information has been filled.

3. Courts Pillar (Center Piece)

- Court is the entity in the government organized for the proper administration of
justice at the time and place prescribed by law.
- It is an entity in which a portion of the judicial power is vested.

The third pillar of the CJS is the forum where the prosecution is given the opportunity to
prove that there is a strong evidence of guilt against the accused. It is also in the courts
that the accused is given his “day in court” to disprove the accusation against him.

The Constitutional presumption is the innocence of any person accused of a crime

unless proved otherwise. This means that the courts must determine the guilt of the
accused – beyond reasonable doubt – based on the strength of the evidence of the
prosecution.

If there is any reasonable doubt that the accused committed the crime, he has to
be acquitted.

The Rules of Court, however, provides that the accused can be convicted of a
lesser crime than the crime he has been charged with in the information. But the elements
of the lesser offense should be necessarily included in the offense charged, and such
lesser crime was proven by competent evidence.
4. Corrections Pillar (Weakest Pillar)

The fourth pillar takes over once the accused, after having been found guilty, is
meted out the penalty for the crime he committed. He can apply for probation or he
could be turned over to a non-institutional or institutional agency or facility for custodial
treatment and rehabilitation. The offender could avail of the benefits of parole or
executive clemency once he has served the minimum period of his sentence.

When the penalty is imprisonment, the sentence is carried out either in the
municipal, provincial or national penitentiary depending on the length of the sentence
meted out.

5. Community Pillar (Victim – Forgotten Person)

The fifth pillar has a two-fold role.

First, it has the responsibility to participate in law enforcement activities by being

partners of the peace officers in reporting the crime incident, and helping in the arrest of
the offender.

Second, it has the responsibility to participate in the promotion of peace and

order through crime prevention or deterrence and in the rehabilitation of convicts and
their reintegration to society.

Rehabilitation takes place when the convict is serving his sentence. A convict
may be paroled or may even be placed on probation.

Under the concept of a participative criminal justice system in the Philippines,

public and private agencies as well as citizens, become a part of the CJS when they
participate and become involved with issues and activities related to crime prevention.

Thus, citizen-based crime prevention groups become part of the CJS within the
framework of their involvement in crime prevention activities and in the reintegration of
the convict who shall be released from the corrections pillar into the mainstream of
society.

Why should you be concerned about the CJS?

You should be concerned about the CJS because it affects your life, your work,
your activities and, in general, your pattern of behavior and relationship in the
community.
This is why the community pillar is also the base of the entire CJS as there will
never be criminal cases, in the first place, if the community is healthy and law-abiding.
But for the few who may have gone astray, they should be reintegrated into the
community once they are released from the penitentiary and should be helped to
become law-abiding members of the community.