Y. Juvenile Justice and Welfare Act (RA 9344, Titles I, IV, and VII, as amended by RA 10630)

K. Juvenile Justice and Welfare Act

(R.A. No. 9344, as amended by R.A. No. 10630, secs. 4, 6-7, 20 and 38)

Bahay Pag-asa

It refers to a 24-hour child-caring institution established, funded and managed by local government units (LGUs) and licensed and/or accredited nongovernment organizations (NGOs) providing short-term residential care for children in conflict with the law who are above fifteen (15) but below eighteen (18) years of age who are awaiting court disposition of their cases or transfer to other agencies or jurisdiction.

Part of the features of a ‘Bahay Pag-asa’ is an intensive juvenile intervention and support center (IJISC). This Center will be allocated for children in conflict with the law in accordance with Sections 20, 20-A and 20-B (children below the age of criminal responsibility, children above 12 but below 15 who commit serious crimes, repeat offenders) hereof. These children will be required to undergo a more intensive multi-disciplinary intervention program.

Multi-disciplinary team

They operate the ‘Bahay Pag-asa’, composed of a social worker, a psychologist/mental health professional, a medical doctor, an educational/guidance counselor and a Barangay Council for the Protection of Children (BCPC) member.

Juvenile Justice Welfare Council

The Juvenile Justice and Welfare Council is attached to the Department of Social Welfare and Development and chaired by a DSWD Undersecretary. It is responsible for ensuring the effective implementation of the Juvenile Justice and Welfare Act (RA 9344, as amended by RA 10630).

Youth Rehabilitation Center

It refers to a 24-hour residential care facility managed by the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD), LGUs, licensed and/or accredited NGOs monitored by the DSWD, which provides care, treatment and rehabilitation services for children in conflict with the law. Rehabilitation services are provided under the guidance of a trained staff where residents are cared for under a structured therapeutic environment with the end view of reintegrating them into their families and communities as socially functioning individuals. (Sec. 4)

RIGHTS OF THE CHILD IN CONFLICT WITH THE LAW

Every child in conflict with the law shall have the following rights, including but not limited to:

• The right not to be subjected to torture or other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment;
• The right not to be imposed a sentence of capital punishment or life imprisonment, without the possibility of release;
• The right not to be deprived, unlawfully or arbitrarily, of his/her liberty; detention or imprisonment being a disposition of last resort, and which shall be for the shortest appropriate period of time;
• The right to be treated with humanity and respect, for the inherent dignity of the person, and in a manner which takes into account the needs of a person of his/her age.
• The right to prompt access to legal and other appropriate assistance, as well as the right to challenge the legality of the deprivation of his/her liberty before a court or other competent, independent and impartial authority, and to a prompt decision on such action;
• The right to bail and recognizance, in appropriate cases;
• The right to testify as a witness in his/her own behalf under the rule on examination of a child witness;
• The right to have his/her privacy respected fully at all stages of the proceedings;
• The right to diversion if he/she is qualified and voluntarily avails of the same;
• The right to be imposed a judgment in proportion to the gravity of the offense where his/her best interest, the rights of the victim and the needs of society are all taken into consideration by the court, under the principle of restorative justice;
• The right to have restrictions on his/her personal liberty limited to the minimum, and where discretion is given by law to the judge to determine whether to impose fine or imprisonment, the imposition of fine being preferred as the more appropriate penalty;
• The right to automatic suspension of sentence;
• The right to probation as an alternative to imprisonment, if qualified under the Probation Law;
• The right to be free from liability for perjury, concealment or misrepresentation; and,
• Other rights as provided for under existing laws, rules and regulations.

Rule on automatic suspension of sentence

If the child who is under 18 years of age at the commission of the offense is found guilty, the court shall ascertain any civil liability. Instead of pronouncing conviction, the child shall be placed under suspended sentence. The suspension shall be applied even if the juvenile is 18 or above at the pronouncement of the child’s guilt. (Sec. 38)

Judgment against children in conflict with the law shall be guided by the following:

• It shall be considered in the circumstances of the best interest of the child, in the demands of restorative justice;
• Restrictions on personal liberty shall be at the minimum. When the court has the discretion to impose a fine instead of the penalty of imprisonment, the imposition of the fine shall be preferred as the more appropriate penalty;
• Prohibition on corporal punishment; and
• Doubts shall be resolved in favor of the child.

If child taken into custody is 15 years or below

The authority which will have initial contact with the child, in consultation with the local social welfare and development officer, has the duty to immediately release the child to the custody of his/her parents or guardian, or in the absence thereof, the child’s nearest relative.

The child shall be subjected to a community-based intervention program supervised by the local social welfare and development officer, unless the best interest of the child requires the referral of the child to a youth care facility or ‘Bahay Pag-asa’. (Sec. 20)

Serious crimes committed by children who are exempt from criminal responsibility

Under Republic Act No. 9344, as amended by Republic Act No. 10630, a child above 12 years of age but not older than 15 who commits any of the following offenses is deemed a neglected child and must be placed in a special facility within a youth care facility or Bahay Pag-asa, called the Intensive Juvenile Intervention and Support Center:

• Parricide, murder, or infanticide;
• Kidnapping and serious illegal detention where the victim is killed or raped;
• Robbery with homicide or rape;
• Destructive arson or rape;
• Carnapping where the driver or occupant is killed or raped; or
• An offense under Republic Act No. 9165 punishable by more than 12 years of imprisonment.

Repetition of offenses

A child who is above twelve (12) years of age up to fifteen (15) years of age and who commits an offense for the second time or oftener: Provided, That the child was previously subjected to a community-based intervention program, shall be deemed a neglected child and shall undergo an intensive intervention program supervised by the local social welfare and development officer.

PROHIBITED ACTS

The following and any other similar acts shall be considered prejudicial and detrimental to the psychological, emotional, social, spiritual, moral and physical health and well-being of the child in conflict with the law and therefore, prohibited:

• In the conduct of the proceedings beginning from the initial contact with the child, the competent authorities must refrain from branding or labeling children as young criminals, juvenile delinquents, prostitutes or attaching to them in any manner any other derogatory names.
• No discriminatory remarks and practices shall be allowed particularly with respect to the child's class or ethnic origin.
• Employment of threats of whatever kind and nature;
• Employment of abusive, coercive and punitive measures such as cursing, beating, stripping, and solitary confinement;
• Employment of degrading, inhuman and cruel forms of punishment such as shaving the heads, pouring irritating, corrosive or harmful substances over the body of the child in conflict with the law, or forcing him/her to walk around the community wearing signs which embarrass, humiliate, and degrade his/her personality and dignity; and
• Compelling the child to perform involuntary servitude in any and all forms under any and all instances. (Secs. 60 and 61)

System of Diversion

Children in conflict with the law shall undergo diversion programs without undergoing court proceedings:

• Where the imposable penalty for the crime committed is not more than six (6) years imprisonment – The law enforcement officer or Punong Barangay with the assistance of the local social welfare and development officer or other members of the LCPC shall conduct mediation, family conferencing and conciliation and, where appropriate, adopt indigenous modes of conflict resolution in accordance with the best interest of the child with a view to accomplishing the objectives of restorative justice and the formulation of a diversion program. The child and his/her family shall be present in these activities.
• In victimless crimes where the imposable penalty is not more than six (6) years imprisonment – The local social welfare and development officer shall meet with the child and his/her parents or guardians for the development of the appropriate diversion and rehabilitation program, in coordination with the BCPC.
• Where the imposable penalty for the crime committed exceeds six (6) years imprisonment – Diversion measures may be resorted to only by the court. (Sec. 23)

Where the maximum penalty imposed by law for the offense with which the child in conflict with the law is charged is imprisonment of not more than twelve (12) years, regardless of the fine or fine alone regardless of the amount, and before arraignment of the child in conflict with the law, the court shall determine whether or not diversion is appropriate. (Sec. 37)

If during the conferencing, mediation or conciliation outside the criminal justice system or prior to his entry into said system, the child voluntarily admits the commission of the act, a diversion program shall be developed when appropriate and desirable as determined under Section 30. Such admission shall not be used against the child in any subsequent judicial, quasi-judicial or administrative proceedings. The diversion program shall be effective and binding if accepted by the parties concerned. The acceptance shall be in writing and signed by the parties concerned and the appropriate authorities. (Sec. 26)

EXEMPTION FROM THE APPLICATION OF DEATH PENALTY

The provisions of the Revised Penal Code, as amended, Republic Act No. 9165, otherwise known as the Comprehensive Dangerous Drugs Act of 2002, and other special laws notwithstanding, no death penalty shall be imposed upon children in conflict with the law.

2. MINORITY (PAR. 2 AND 3) [Modified by RA. No. 9344 or the Juvenile Justice and Welfare Act of 2006)

Automatic suspension of sentence

Once the child who is under 18 years of age at the time of the commission of the offense is found guilty of the offense charged, the court shall determine and ascertain any civil liability which may have resulted from the offense committed. However, instead of pronouncing the judgment of conviction, the court shall place the child in conflict with the law under suspended sentence, without need of application. Suspension of sentence shall still be applied even if the juvenile is already 18 years of age or more at the time of the pronouncement of his/her guilt. Upon suspension of sentence and after considering the various circumstances of the child, the court shall impose the appropriate disposition measures as provided in the Supreme Court Rule on Juveniles in Conflict with the Law. (Sec. 38, R.A. No. 9344)