UNIVERSITY OF THE CORDILLERAS

COLLEGE OF LAW
Baguio City

INSTRUCTIONS

1. Read each question very carefully and write your answers on a

notebook in the same order as the questions. Write your answers
only on the front page of every sheet. Note well the allocated
percentage points for each question or sub-question. In your
answers, use the numbering system in the questionnaire.

2. Answer the questions legibly, clearly, and concisely. Start each

answer on a separate page.

3. Your answer should demonstrate your ability to analyze the facts,

apply the pertinent laws and jurisprudence, and arrive at a sound
or logical conclusion. Always support your answer with the
pertinent laws, rules, and/or jurisprudence.

A MERE "YES" OR "NO" ANSWER WITHOUT ANY

CORRESPONDING EXPLANATION OR DISCUSSION WILL
NOT BE GIVEN FULL CREDIT. THUS, ALWAYS BRIEFLY BUT
FULLY EXPLAIN YOUR ANSWERS ALTHOUGH THE
QUESTION DOES NOT EXPRESSLY ASK FOR AN
EXPLANATION. DO NOT REWRITE OR REPEAT THE
QUESTION ON YOUR NOTEBOOK.

4. Do not write your name or any extraneous note/s or distinctive

marking/s on your Notebook that can serve as an identifying mark/s
(such as names that are not in the given questions, prayers, or
private notes to the Examiner). Writing, leaving, or making any
distinguishing or identifying mark in the Notebook is considered
cheating and can disqualify you.

5. All answers should be sent to pjtcuarteros@gmail.com. On the

SUBJECT portion of the electronic mail, the following should be
written: JD1_. ID NUMBER. On the blank, write your section. DO
NOT INDICATE YOUR NAME ON THE SUBJECT.

6. Submission of answers should be made only ONCE. If, however, the

size of all the files containing your answers exceed that allowed by
Google, a google drive link should be attached to the message.

7. Answers should be submitted in an orderly manner.

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 8. Noncompliance with any of the foregoing shall merit you NO point.

9. The examination is worth 100 POINTS.

10. You only have three (3) hours to submit your answers. Should
you fail to submit your answers within the time given, there shall
be a deduction of 3 points for every minute of delay.

I.

Pedro Londoño is the Director of the Department of Public Works

and Highways (DPWH) – Quezon City. He was in that post for more than
ten (10) years. During these years, he has been diverting funds from the
government to his personal accounts and the personal accounts of his
wife, children, friends, and other Directors of DPWH. An audit conducted
by the Commission on Audit found that he siphoned a total amount of
five (5) billion pesos to these accounts. A case for plunder was then filed
against Londoño, his wife, children, friends, and the other Directors of
the DPWH.

1. Explain chain and wheel conspiracy. 5 points only.

2. What kind of conspiracy is present in the case? What is the
effect of conspiracy on the criminal liability of the accused
should be found liable for plunder by the Court? 5 points
only.

II.

Inday dela Vega, a Filipino, is a mother of three (3). Because of

hardships in life, she left her children with her mother and went to the
Republic of China to work in a factory. She communicates with her
children and her mother through the internet. Most of the times, she uses
social media platforms to do this. One time, when she was surfing
Facebook, she saw a recently posted picture of Bogart Cruz, the father of
her children, with another woman in a beach somewhere in Palawan.
Filled with murderous rage, she posted on her wall tagging the Facebook
accounts of the woman and Bogart Cruz: “Mga manloloko kayo. Mamatay
kayo. Mga baboy. Hayop. Magsama kayong mga kriminal. Iniwan mo
mga anak mo para maglandi ka ng pokpok.”

1. Can you prosecute Inday dela Vega in the Philippines for

cyberlibel? 5 points only.
2. What if Bogart Cruz and the other woman were in Thailand
at the time Inday dela Vega posted, will your answer be the
same? 5 points only.

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 III.

Mayor Abu Saddo awarded a concession to his daughter, Ms Ada

Saddo. She was the highest bidder. The award was even endorsed by the
municipal council as the most advantageous to the municipality. The
losing bidder challenged the validity of the contract, but the trial court
sustained the contract’s validity. The case went to the Sandiganbayan
and the mayor got convicted for violation of Republic Act No. 3019 (RA
3019) or the Anti-Graft and Corrupt Practices Act. The Sandiganbayan
found that he clearly violated R.A. No. 3019. He appealed to the Supreme
Court alleging his defenses raised in the Sandiganbayan that he did not
profit from the transaction, that the contract was advantageous to the
municipality, that he did not act with intent to gain, and that he was in
good faith when he awarded the concession to Ms Ada Saddo.

1. Differentiate mala in se and mala prohibita. 5 points only.

2. If you were a justice of the Supreme Court, how will you rule?
5 points only.

IV.

Mocha Braguda and Rigo Braguda are married. On the 5th year of
their marriage, their relationship turned sour. They always had fights
about little things. One night, Rigo came home late and found that Mocha
did not cook any food. They then had an altercation. While verbally
abusing each other relentlessly, Rigo grabbed a knife and plunged it into
Mocha’s chest. Rigo suddenly realized what he did so he took Mocha to
the hospital where he is working as a surgeon. He then operated on
Mocha and saved Mocha’s life. Had there been no immediate operation,
Mocha would have expired. Mocha then brought a case against Rigo for
frustrated homicide. If you were the defense counsel, what will be your
argument? 5 points only.

V.

Determine whether there is criminal liability in the following:

1. Ping Guerrero had an altercation with Kent Thor, an

American. They were at a bar at that time. The bar owner
warned them that there will be no fighting inside the bar. As
such, they went out of the bar to continue their fight. Ping took
out his gun and pointed it at Thor. Bu Ang, a Chinese
spectator, quickly went to Ping and started taking the gun
from Ping to prevent Ping from shooting the defenseless Kent.
Upon pulling the gun from Ping, something exploded. Bu fell
to the ground. He died. Is Ping criminally liable for Bu’s
death? 5 points only.
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2. Anne Sosa had been courting Bogart Maquatunay for the last
five years. Bogart Maquatunay told Anne Sosa, “Let us just be
friends. I want to become a lawyer first. I also want a lawyer
for a wife, and I have already found somebody whom I agreed
to marry. Anyway, there are still a lot of men around; you will
find someone perfect for you." Anne Sosa went down from the
house of Bogart Maquatunay, went inside her car, started the
vehicle, stepped on the accelerator to the limit, and closed her
eyes. The vehicle zoomed, running over all the pedestrians on
the street. At the end, the car crashed on a fence. Anne was
taken to the hospital, and she survived. Can she be held
criminally liable for all those innocent people that she ran
over? 5 points only.

3. Chris Aquino was fed up with the bullying that he got through
his social media accounts. Depressed, he thought of killing
himself. He went on top of a tall building and jumped. He
landed on a parked car owned by Nico Mendoza. Nico, who
was inside the car, instantly died. The car was severely
damaged. Miraculously, Chris survived. Is Chris Aquino
criminally liable? 5 points only.

4. Mae, Angeli, and Bea went on a fishing trip. While they were
on a boat in the middle of the sea, Mae and Angeli had an
altercation about a boy they were obsessing about. Mae took
out her long, sharp knife, rose in rage, and started
brandishing the knife in front of Angeli and Bea. Believing
herself to be in immediate peril, Bea threw herself out to the
ocean. Bea drowned and died. Can Mae be criminally liable
for Bea’s death? 5 points only.

5. Annie Kristina Crisostomo-Keating is a famous criminal

lawyer in Baguio City. After attending a funeral service in a
funeral home along Naguilian Road, Baguio City, she asked
the owner of the funeral home if she could enter their
mortuary to see if there are unclaimed corpses. When she was
inside, they pulled out all the unclaimed bodies. When inside,
she saw a dead person who is very familiar to her, her college
crush. Annie and the owner were talking about the body when
the owner was called to tend to some guests. When she was
alone, the memories of her college years came back. She then
started to undress and went on top of the corpse and started
having sexual congress with the corpse. Is she criminally
liable? 5 points only.

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 VI.

Jenny was married to Gorio. During the first years of their

relationship, it was a bliss. Gorio was an overseas factory worker in
Tokyo, Japan. When he came back to the Philippines, the abuse started.
Jenny was often physically violated. She was also psychologically abused
by Gorio. Tired of the relationship, Jenny left Gorio and went to the
comfort of the house of a friend, Becky. Years after living with Becky,
Jenny fell in love with her. They then lived together as spouses. They had
a child together with the help of medical science. Jenny bore the child but
it was the fertilized egg of Becky. When the child was born, the child was
registered under the name of Jenny without a father. After ten (10) years
of living together, Jenny and Becky’s relationship turned sour. Becky
would often slap Jenny and the child. Most times, Becky locked the door
of their house so Jenny and the child would sleep outside the house. Most
of the times also, they make up. But the abuse would recur after
sometime. Tired of everything that was happening with her and her
child’s life, Jenny stabbed Becky once on the chest with a kitchen knife.
Becky died. Jenny was prosecuted for murder. She then raised the
defense of battered woman syndrome. Rule on her defense. 5 points
only.

VII.

Pedro delos Santos is neighbors with Dina Virgie Cruz. Dina was a
very seductive woman. Pedro had always gratified himself while thinking
of Dina. Pedro had always wanted to possess her. One evening when
Pedro came home from work, he saw Dina dressed in a very skimpy night
gown. Refusing to control his urges, he entered Dina’s house through an
open window. When inside, he saw Dina sleeping in her room. Pedro,
however, lost interest when he saw Dina nude on the bed. He then left
Dina’s house. Pedro was prosecuted for attempted rape. If you were the
defense counsel, what will be your argument? 5 points only.

VIII.

Determine whether an impossible crime is present in the following:

1. Iñaki Reyes was driving along Session Road at 8 o’clock in the

evening. While driving, he saw the most beautiful woman
standing on the side of the road. The woman looked like she
was waiting for a taxi. Iñaki stopped in front of the woman
and asked her if she wants a ride. The woman agreed and rode
Iñaki’s car. After minutes of driving and talking with each
other, Iñaki stopped the car on an unlit part of the road
leading to where the woman said she was going. Iñaki started
kissing the woman to which the woman offered no protests
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 because of fear that Iñaki might hurt her. Although the
woman allowed Iñaki to kiss her, she was reluctant. It was
just that she was afraid for her life so she offered no protests.
Iñaki started undressing the woman when he realized that
the woman was not a woman but actually a man. Frustrated
and angry, Iñaki punched the woman on the face, kicked her,
and left her on the side of the road, naked and wounded. Is an
impossible crime committed? 5 points only.

2. Tommy and Jerry are roommates in a boarding house. Every

day before leaving for work, Tommy would lock the food
cabinet where he kept all his food. Jerry resented this. One
day, he got an electric cord, tied the one end to the door knob
and plugged the other end to an electric outlet. The idea was
that when Tommy comes home to open the door knob, he
would be electrocuted. Unknown to Jerry, Tommy is working
in an electronic shop where he received a daily dosage of
electric shock. When Tommy opened the doorknob, nothing
happened to him. He was just surprised to find out that there
was an electric cord plugged to the outlet and the other hand
to the door knob. Is an impossible crime committed? 5 points
only.

3. Lorna and Marcus were lovers. Marcus was willing to marry

Lorna except that he is already married. Marcus then thought
of killing his wife. He prepared her breakfast every morning,
and each morning, he placed a little dose of oxalic acid, a
poisonous compound, into the breakfast of the wife. The wife
consumed all the food prepared by her husband including the
poison but nothing happened to her. Because of the volume of
the household chores that the wife had to attend to daily, she
developed a physical condition that rendered her so strong
and resistance to any kind of poisoning, so the amount of
poison applied to her breakfast has no effect to her.

a. Is there an impossible crime? 5 points only.

b. What if what was actually fed to his wife was sugar
and not oxalic acid, is there an impossible crime? 5
points only.

IX.

Xander Ford is in an intimate relationship with Pia Horseback. Pia,

however, wanted to break up with Xander because Xander had a face that
only his mother could love. One morning when Xander was still asleep,
Pia poured muriatic acid on Xander’s face. After timely plastic surgery,

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Xander became handsome. Pia again became enamored by Xander. Is Pia
criminally liable? 2.5 points only.

X.

Anne Smith is a lawyer teaching Criminal Law. During the

midterm exams, she gave a very difficult test that none of her students
passed. One of her students, Mary Lu, out of anger, paid ₱100,000.00 to
Berns and Bogs for them to kill Anne. On the day Berns and Bogs were
supposed to kill Anne, Mary changed her mind and contacted Berns and
Bogs. Unfortunately, Berns and Bogs were not answering her calls or text
messages. Mary then went to the police and told them of the plan. The
police rushed to Anne’s office where the crime was supposed to happen
but they were caught in traffic. Anne died. The prosecution charged
Berns, Bogs, and Mary with murder. Is the prosecution correct? 2.5
points only.

XI.

Herman was reviewing for the bar exam when Bin, the commander
of IRIS, a vigilante group, came to him and showed him a list of five (5)
policemen to be liquidated by them for graft and corruption. He was
further asked if any of them is innocent. After going over the list, Ricky
pointed to two of the policemen as honest. Later, the vigilante group
liquidated the three other policemen in the list. The commander of the
vigilante group informed Ricky of the liquidation. Is Ricky criminally
liable? 5 points only.

XII.

Jak and Jok are neighbors. They are also enemies. They have been
quarrelling about the boundaries of their properties for several decades.
One day when Jak saw Jok, Jak approached Jok with a bolo in his hand.
When Jak was about five feet away, Jok pulled out his gun and shot Jak.
Can Jak raise the defense of self-defense? 5 points only.

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