00:00 A man was arrested for wrongful conviction. He was arrested after a local resident was sleeping in the house.
00:07 He was accused of having a murder case.
00:11 The real suspect was inside Barangay Hall.
00:15 What does the law say about these incidents?
00:19 Let's find out with our "Kapuso sa Batas" attorney, Gaby Concepcion.
00:23 Good morning, attorney.
00:24 Good morning. That video is so embarrassing.
00:28 What we can say is that there are many wrongful convictions.
00:32 It's really dangerous.
00:33 We often hear about these kinds of cases,
00:38 cases of arresting a suspect.
00:40 What if it's a wrongful conviction like the one you mentioned,
00:43 what will happen to those who are being arrested?
00:48 Well, at the end of the day, it's night.
00:52 It's night time.
00:53 This is still a case of physical injuries, whether serious, less serious, or slight physical injuries.
01:01 We will know who is involved in this.
01:06 Usually, because there is CCTV, it's easy to find out who did the wrongful conviction.
01:13 But if this is a spontaneous ramble,
01:16 where there are many people involved,
01:18 well, actually, it's the same as this.
01:20 There is a crime in Article 252 of the Revised Penal Code
01:24 called "Physical Injuries in a Tumultuous Afray."
01:29 Afray. It's scary.
01:30 Afray. I'm so afray.
01:31 No, it's different. Afray.
01:32 Afray.
01:33 Afray.
01:34 This is a crime in a ramble where there are not less than four people involved,
01:39 and someone got hurt, and we don't know who really got hurt.
01:45 All the people involved who look like they are injured are guilty.
01:49 The penalty is lower than, for example, serious physical injuries.
01:53 But they have the same weight of the case.
01:55 But they are the same.
01:56 So, the mistaken identity, the wrongful conviction,
01:59 it cannot be different or the case cannot be removed from the convicts
02:03 because they still did the wrong thing.
02:05 Yes.
02:06 This is called in the law, "Error in Personae,"
02:09 a wrongful conviction in the identity of the victim.
02:12 The intention of doing something wrong, of hurting someone, is not lost.
02:18 The identity is just a mistake.
02:20 So, as far as the law is concerned, the case is still the same against the victim.
02:24 Even if they apologize, you will be locked up.
02:27 Can you, attorney, consider this a citizen's arrest?
02:30 These cases of robbery so that the suspect in the crime can be caught.
02:35 They thought it was a suspect.
02:36 If it's a citizen's arrest, the arrest should be peaceful, right?
02:40 That's why we say again and again that it's better if you call the police or the authority
02:47 instead of taking the law into your own hands because first of all, you might get hurt
02:52 or you will make a mistake and you will be the one to be charged because you made a mistake in your identity.
02:59 The citizen's arrest or even the arrest without a warrant of a law enforcer,
03:04 you cannot do it just like that because you might think it's wrong.
03:08 Under the law, only those who can arrest without a warrant can do it
03:12 if it is an "inflagrante delicto."
03:14 We have a lot of Latin words today.
03:16 "Inflagrante delicto" or "caught in the act"
03:19 "Huli sa acto."
03:20 Or if the person who wants to arrest is just committing a crime,
03:24 you have personal knowledge that he is the one who did it.
03:27 Sure, sure.
03:28 Sure, sure.
03:29 And you will be the one who is being chased.
03:32 This is called "hot pursuit."
03:34 But the requirement is personal knowledge, not gossip, not gossip, not fake news
03:40 because there might be a mistaken identity.
03:43 The person who is being arrested might be hurt.
03:46 Who just happened to be in the wrong place at the wrong time.
03:49 Just like in the video, the person who they think is the one who committed the crime,
03:53 the person who actually committed the crime is inside the barangay hall.
03:57 They are pitiful because they became victims.
03:59 It's very likely, attorney, that the person who was chased is a minor.
04:03 The child is pitiful.
04:04 The suspect is very likely.
04:05 Will the case be heavier on the victims because the victim is a minor?
04:10 Well, usually, this can be included in Republic Act 7610 as a form of child abuse.
04:16 Under this law, child abuse or abuse of a minor, which could be physical abuse,
04:22 or anything that demeans or debases the worth and dignity of a child,
04:26 can be considered as child abuse.
04:28 Although, we need to take note, in a case that reached the Supreme Court,
04:32 the court said that not all cases of child abuse are child abuse.
04:37 The Supreme Court said in the case of Bongalon v. People of the Philippines,
04:43 the beating of a man by a minor caused a lot of heat in the head
04:48 because the child committed a crime to his children.
04:50 A case for physical injuries and not child abuse depends on the facts and circumstances
04:57 of the abuse of a minor.
04:59 Before we can say that this is a case of child abuse under Republic Act 7610.
05:05 And not all cases involving a minor are automatic mitigating circumstances.
05:12 So, we still need to look into it.
05:14 The takeaway is that it's not because everyone is accusing him of having a crime.
05:17 Correct. And don't get confused because I'm sure that this case started with one person,
05:23 later, it's a group of people who don't know what the reason is.
05:28 That's what I call a misunderstanding.
05:30 Attorney Gabby, thank you very much.
05:32 You're welcome.
05:34 [BLANK_AUDIO]
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