"Prosecution de oficio" refers to the prosecution of a crime by the State, typically through the public prosecutor or fiscal. This is the default mode of prosecution for most crimes.
In crimes that can be prosecuted de oficio, the State initiates and controls the criminal proceeding. The interests of the private offended party, represented by a private prosecutor who may intervene in the case, are considered subordinate to the interests of the People of the Philippines, which the public prosecutor represents.
Crimes that cannot be prosecuted de oficio are known as private crimes. In such cases, the offended party plays a more predominant role in the prosecution, as the State defers to the offended party to expose the acts involved.
Crimes Requiring a Complaint by the Offended Party or Specified Relatives
The offenses of seduction, abduction, rape, and acts of lasciviousness cannot be prosecuted de oficio. Prosecution for these crimes requires a complaint filed by the offended party. In the absence of the offended party, the complaint may be filed by her parents, grandparents, or guardian.
- Seduction
- Abduction
- Rape
- Acts of Lasciviousness
Crimes Requiring a Complaint Naming Both Guilty Parties
The crimes of adultery and concubinage cannot be prosecuted except upon a complaint filed by the offended party. This complaint must name both the guilty parties if they are both alive.
- Adultery
- Concubinage
Effect of Pardon or Subsequent Marriage
For the offenses of adultery, concubinage, seduction, abduction, rape, and acts of lasciviousness, the criminal prosecution cannot proceed if the offended party has consented to or pardoned the offenders. Specifically, in cases of seduction, abduction, rape, or acts of lasciviousness, the marriage of the offender with the offended party extinguishes the criminal action or remits the penalty imposed upon him.