Criminal Law: Pardon, Amnesty, Probation, and Parole

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Pardon (by Chief Executive)

Art. 89 and Art. 94 of the Revised Penal Code states that criminal liability may be totally
or partially extinguished by absolute or conditional pardon.

Pardon is basically a decision of the government to absolve a person of guilt for an

alleged crime or other legal offense. It has the effect of extinguishing the criminal
liability of an offender. It has two classifications – absolute pardon and conditional
pardon.

Absolute pardon refers to the total extinction of criminal liability to whom it is granted
without any condition. It restores to the individual his civil and political rights, and remits
the penalty imposed for the particular offense of which he was convicted. On the
otherhand, conditional pardon refers to the exemption of an individual from the
punishment subject to the fulfillment of a certain condition as imposed by the
government authority.

Note that both absolute and conditional pardon are exercised by the Chief Executive,
which is enunciated in Art. 36 of the RPC. Pardon by Chief Executiveextends to any
crime, unless the law provides otherwise.

There also exists Pardon by the Offended Party under Art. 23 of the same law.
However, it only applies to crimes under Art. 344. Unlike a pardon granted by a Chief
Executive, pardon by the offended party does not extinguish criminal liability, although it
may constitute a bar to the prosecution of offender.

In short, it is Pardon by Chief Executive that is referred to by Art. 89 and Art. 94 of the
RPC.

Pardon vs Amnesty

Take note that pardon differs from amnesty. Pardon applies to any crime and is exercised
on an individual by the President; whereas, amnesty is a blanket pardon to classes of
persons or communities who may be guilty of political offense. Pardon merely looks
forward and does not restore the person’s right to hold public office or the right to
suffrage unless the terms of pardon restores it; whereas, amnesty looks backward and
abolishes the offense itself as though the person had not committed any offense. Pardon
is a private act pleaded and proved by the person pardoned, then granted by the President,
whereas amnesty is a public act granted by the President with concurrence from the
Congress.
It was amnesty that was granted to Sen. Antonio Trillanes after the 2007 Manila
Peninsula siege.

Can you pardon a dead person?

The author cannot find any jurisprudence as to this matter. For now, he is of the opinion
that this cannot happen. The whole point of pardon is that it extinguishes criminal
liability, which is also achieved thru death of the offender.

Probation

Under the Probation Law (PD 968 as amended by RA 10707), probation is a disposition
under which a defendant, after conviction and sentence, is released subject to condition
imposed by the court and to the supervision of a probation officer. Probation leads to
partial extinguishment of criminal liability.

This applies to all offenders, except those entitled to benefit under the Child and Youth
Welfare Code and similar laws.

It is very important to note that there are those who are disqualified to apply for
probation, to wit:
a. Sentenced to a maximum term of imprisonment of more than 6 years;
b. Convicted of any crime against national security;
c. Previously convicted by final judgment of an offense punished by imprisonment of not
less than 1 month and 1 day and/or fine of not more than Php 1,000;
d. Those who have once been on probation;
e. Those who appealed;
f. Those convicted of drug trafficking or drug pushing under R.A. 9165;
g. Those convicted of election offenses under the Omnibus Election Code

An accused applies for a probation with the trial court within the period for perfecting an
appeal. Note that appeal and an application for probation are alternative remedies.

It is the court which grants or denies the application for probation. Once granted, it
imposes upon the applicant several conditions, including the mandatory appearance to the
probation officer and reporting to him once a month. Court may order the final discharge
of the probationer upon finding that he has fulfilled the terms and conditions of his
probation. Failure to comply with the conditions may lead to the probationer being
rearrested to serve the remainder of his sentence, among others.

Parole
The concept of parole is found in Indeterminate Sentence Law (ISLaw). Parole also leads
to the partial extinguishment of criminal liability. It is the suspension of the sentence of a
convict after serving the minimum term of the indeterminate penalty, without granting a
pardon, prescribing the term upon which the sentence shall be suspended.

ISLaw fixes a maximum and minimum penalty for several crimes. The purpose of fixing
the maximum penalty is to determine up to when the convict must service his sentence in
prison. Upon serving the maximum penalty, the accused will be released. On the
otherhand, the reason in fixing the minimum is to determine when the convict will be
eligible for parole. Upon serving the minimum penalty, the accused may be released on
parole by the Board of Pardons and Parole.

Note that there are instances or crimes where the benefits of ISLaw are not applicable, to
wit:

1. Treason, conspiracy or proposal to commit treason, misprision of treason, rebellion or

sedition, espionage or piracy;
2. Habitual Delinquents (Note: A recidivist is not excluded from the coverage of the
ISLAW);
3. Those who have escaped from confinement or evaded sentence;
4. Those who violated the terms of conditional pardon;
5. Penalty of imprisonment, the maximum term of which does not exceed one year;
6. Death Penalty or life imprisonment (Section 2 of Act No. 4103); or reclusion perpetua;
and,
7. Use of trafficked victim.

Note that pardon differs from parole in the following aspects: Pardon is given after final
judgment and is granted by the Chief Executive. On the otherhand, parole is given after
the prisoner has served the minimum penalty and is granted by the Board of Pardons and
Parole.