Ex post facto law..................................................................................................................1
Source: Cruz, Constitutional Law, 2007 Ed., p266.............................................................1 1.No ex post facto law or ill of attainder s!all e enacted "art ###, sec 22, Consti$...........2 2.#t is a law w!ic! %a&es a prior act cri%inal alt!ou'! it was not so at t!e ti%e it was co%%itted. (peratin' retroacti)el*, it affects antecedent acts efore its enact%ent...........2 +.,inds.................................................................................................................................2 -.C!aracteristics...................................................................................................................+ ../ill of attainder.................................................................................................................- Source: Cruz, Constitutional Law, 2007 Ed., p266 1 1. No ex post facto law or bill of attainder shall be enacted (art III, sec 22, Consti] 2. It is a law which makes a prior act criminal althouh it was not so at the time it was committed. !peratin retroacti"el#, it affects antecedent acts before its enactment. $. %inds $.1. 1. & law that makes criminal an act done before the passae and which was innocent when done, and punishes such act $.2. 2. & law that ara"ates a crime or makes it reater than it was committed $.$. $. & law that chanes punishment and inflicts a reater punishment than the law annexed to the crime when committed. $.'. '. <ers the leal rules of e"idence and recei"es less or different testimon# than the law re(uired at the time of the commission of the offense in order to con"ict the defendant. 2 $.). ). &ssumes to reulate ci"il rihts and remedies onl#. In effect imposes penalt# or depri"ation of a riht for somethin which when done was lawful $.*. *. +epri"es a person accused of a crime of some lawful protection to which he has become entitled, such as the protection of a former con"iction or ac(uittal, or a proclamation of amnest# '. Characteristics '.1. 1. ,he law refers to criminal matters '.2. 2. It is retroacti"e in its application '.$. $. -urposel# to pre.udice the accused. '.$.1. /here a law penal and retroacti"e does not operate to disad"antae the accused, the same is not ex post facto. ,hus, a law reducin the penalt# for murder from death to life imprisonment applied retroacti"el# will benefit rather than pre.udice the con"ict. '.'. 0C cases + '.'.1. ,he war profit tax law retroacti"el# imposin taxes on properties and income ac(uired durin the 1apanese occupation is not an ex post facto law, as the prohibition applies onl# to criminal or penal matters and not to laws which concern ci"il matters or proceedins enerall# (2epublic "s 3ernande45 '.'.2. /here a law amendin a pro"ision of the &nti 6raft and Corrupt -ractices &ct imposin suspension pendente lite of an# public officers chared therein, it was held that the amendment is not ex post facto law, e"en if applied retroacti"el# because the suspension is not puniti"e but merel# pre"enti"e (7a#ot "s. 0andianba#an5 '.'.$. &n amendator# law merel# procedural in nature did not partake of the nature of an ex post facto law (-eople "s. 8ilo5 '.'.'. &n amendator# law permittin the prosecutor to initiate the chare for adulter#, when at the time of the commission of the offense, onl# the offended spouse could commence the action, was held to be an ex post facto law (90 "s. 6ome4 Coronel5 ). 7ill of attainder - ).1. 7ills of attainders are leislati"e acts that appl# either to named indi"iduals or to easil# ascertainable members of a roup in such a wa# as to inflict punishment without .udicial trial (90 "s. :o"ett5 ).2. It is a leislati"e act that inflicts punishment without trial substitutin leislati"e fiat for .udicial determination of uilt. .