Post traumatic stress disorder as a justifying circumstance (revised)

• Main Authors: Sarmiento, Maria Michaela O., Tinimbang, Karen Bianca M.
• Format: text
• Language: English
• Published: Animo Repository 2013
• Subjects: Justification (Law) > Philippines; Post-traumatic stress disorder
• Online Access: https://animorepository.dlsu.edu.ph/etd_bachelors/11969
• Institution: De La Salle University

Every person who commits a crime that is punishable under the Revised Penal Code of the Philippines shall bear with the consequences that are equivalent to the crime he has committed. Crimes that fall under the Criminal Law of the Philippines have an equivalent punishment that a person who committed such crime against the Philippines should be responsible for. Though at the present times, there are several factors that lead a person in committing a crime due to their mental and emotional illness and one of which is the Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD). Cases on PTSD are now increasing worldwide, it may not be a common defense here in the Philippines yet, but international cases now involve a number of defenses involving PTSD. As defined by a primary source, Post Traumatic Stress Disorder is a kind of mood disorder, an anxiety disorder that develops after a stressful or a harmful event. The person who caused the harmful event either develops it or the person who experienced the harmful event of the person witnessed such harmful event. (Dra. Joanna Pascual) PTSD mat effect the way of thinking and the way the person would. So having the attitude of sudden outburst of violence and behavior when being put on a similar situation that had brought him/her stress, it is most likely that these victims are usually linked to criminal behavior. The criminal system present in the Philippines unjustly punished these victims by not taking in consideration their mental illness. Unlike insanity, PTSD is not really a common mental disease here in the Philippines, so the law does not stress out on this matter and it is not specifically included in the mitigating circumstances listed down in Article 13 of the Revised Penal Code accused tend to argue that they have done such criminal act due to self-defense. Self-defense then may be considered as a justifying circumstance under Article 11 of the Revised Penal Code. Hence this paper, the researcher then aims to amend the Justifying Circumstances and add the Post Traumatic Stress Disorder as a justifying circumstance for as long as all the requisites are present and the evidences are clearly shown.