Mitigating Circumstances: Privileged Mitigating

Now that you've read about justifying and exempting circumstances, here is the next set of circumstances that affect criminal liability.

Mitigating circumstances, if present, will reduce the penalty and not relieve a person of liability for the crime that he committed. They will not change the nature of the crime. They are based on either the diminution of freedom of action, intelligence or intent, or on the offender's lesser perversity (read: less bad.)

Mitigating circumstances fall into 2 categories: ordinary mitigating and privileged mitigating. Ordinary mitigating circumstances are those that are enumerated in Art. 13 of the Revised Penal Code. Privileged mitigating circumstances are found in other parts of the Revised Penal Code and RA 9344. Privileged mitigating circumstances are applicable only to particular crimes. In this post, we'll talk about privileged mitigating circumstances.

Art. 13, par. 2 and Art. 68, both of the Revised Penal Code, have been modified/repealed by RA 9344. People therefore over 15 but under 18 years old are exempt from criminal liability if they didn't act with discernment and, if they did, will get a penalty next lower than what is prescribed by law.

In Art. 69, the penalty is lowered by 1 or 2 degrees if the act of the perpetrator isn't fully excusable, such as in incomplete self-defense. In case the penalty the law prescribes contains 3 periods either as a single divisible penalty or one that has 3 different penalties, each will form a period.

Ordinary mitigating circumstances can be offset by aggravating circumstances; privileged mitigating circumstances can't. If an ordinary mitigating circumstance isn't offset by an aggravating circumstance the penalty is considered to be applied in its minimum period. Privileged mitigating circumstances have the effect of imposing a penalty 1 or 2 degrees lower than what is prescribed by law.