Prescription period
Dear Atty. Angela,
I had a heated argument with the son of my boss. He punched me and then smashed a bottle into my head. I filed a criminal case for slight physical injuries before the prosecutor's office a month after it happened. No settlement was reached. A criminal case for slight physical injuries was eventually filed before the court but the judge dismissed the criminal case on the ground of prescription. He was of the opinion that the crime of slight physical injuries is a light offense which prescribes in two months pursuant to Article 90 of the Revised Penal Code. Since the criminal case was filed more than 60 days from the date of the incident, the case prescribed. Is this correct?
James
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Dear James,
The ruling of the judge in your case is incorrect. The filing of the criminal action with the office of the public prosecutor stopped the running of the period of prescription. In the case of Cabelic v. Judge Geronimo, A.M. OCA IPI No. 00-948 (2002), the Supreme Court held that Article 91 of the Revised Penal Code provides that the period of prescription shall be "interrupted by the filing of the complaint or information."
Notably, the said article does not distinguish whether the complaint is filed for preliminary examination or investigation only or for an action on the merits. However, the court, in the case of Reodica vs. Court of Appeals declared that the filing of the complaint even with the fiscal's office suspends the running of the statute of limitations.
In the Reodica case, it was declared that Section 9 [9] of the Rule on Summary Procedure which provides that in cases covered thereby, "the prosecution commences by the filing of a complaint or information directly with the MeTC, RTC or MCTC" cannot be taken to mean that the prescriptive period is interrupted only by the filing of a complaint or information directly with said court.
The court ruled therein that in case of conflict between the Rule on Summary Procedure promulgated by the Court and the Revised Penal Code, which is a substantive law, the latter prevails.