The Supreme Court (SC) has imposed a heavier penalty for psychological violence committed against women and children through the use of social media.

In a resolution made public on 16 July, the high court affirmed its earlier ruling but modified and increased the penalty imposed on a man for inflicting psychological violence against his former girlfriend through social media.

The SC earlier affirmed the rulings of both the trial court and the Court of Appeals (CA), which convicted the man of violating Republic Act 9262, or the Anti-Violence Against Women and Their Children (VAWC) Act of 2004, and sentenced him to imprisonment ranging from six months and one day (prision correccional) to eight years and one day (prision mayor).

After resolving the man’s motion for reconsideration, the SC increased his prison term to six years and one day (prision mayor) to 14 years, eight months and one day (reclusion temporal).

The resolution, written by Associate Justice Ramon Paul L. Hernando, stated that “by virtue of Section 6 of Republic Act 10175 (Cybercrime Prevention Act of 2012), the use of an ICT (Information and Communication Technology) in the commission of a crime or offense is a qualifying circumstance warranting the imposition of a higher penalty.”

Qualifying circumstance

The SC said: “As such, it must be sufficiently alleged in the criminal complaint or information, as required under Rule 110, Section 8 of the Rules of Court, as amended. Otherwise, it cannot be appreciated as a qualifying circumstance even if proved during trial.”

A summary of the case issued by the SC Office of the Spokesperson stated that the man and his girlfriend had been in a relationship for three years when she became pregnant.

The man proposed marriage, but the woman declined because of problems in their relationship. He then raised their daughter, who lived with her maternal grandparents.

During one visit to their daughter, the man suddenly grabbed and groped the woman. Traumatized, she blocked him from her social media accounts, including Facebook.

Years later, the woman’s siblings received a private message on Facebook Messenger from an account they knew belonged to the man.

P100K fine

The message insinuated that the woman had caused his mother to suffer a heart attack. The following day, the woman learned from a friend that the same account had posted a statement on Facebook calling her a dirty woman and an animal and threatening to punch her when he saw her.

The insults were repeated in the comments on the public post. Fearing for her safety, the woman filed a complaint against the man for violating Republic Act 9262.

The Regional Trial Court (RTC), acting as a Family Court, and the CA found him guilty. The SC affirmed the conviction and the penalty imposed by the CA, which upheld the prison term imposed by the RTC.

It also affirmed the P100,000 fine and the order requiring the man to undergo psychological counseling or psychiatric treatment.