PHYSICAL-INJURY PROSECUTIONS AGAINST ADULT OFFENDERS WHERE THE VICTIM IS A MINOR (PHILIPPINES)

A practitioner-oriented overview

1. Statutory Framework

Core source	Key provisions when the VICTIM is a CHILD (below 18)
Revised Penal Code (RPC), Arts. 262-266	Defines Serious, Less-Serious, and Slight Physical Injuries as well as Mutilation and Administering Injurious Substances. Penalties depend on gravity (medical attendance > 90 days, 30-90 days, ≤ 30 days, or none) and residual incapacity for work.
R.A. 7610 (1992) – Special Protection of Children Against Abuse, Exploitation & Discrimination Act	§ 3(b) defines child abuse as any act which results in physical or psychological harm, or which tends to degrade or demean. § 10(a) punishes “[a]ny act of child abuse, cruelty or exploitation… or to be responsible for the child’s physical injuries with penalties one (1) degree higher** than those provided in the RPC for the same injuries.
R.A. 8369 (1997) – Family Courts Act	Exclusive original jurisdiction over “criminal cases where one or more of the victims is a child, except for crimes where the penalty is death, reclusion perpetua, or life imprisonment (handled by RTC sitting as a family court).”
A.M. No. 00-4-07-SC (Rule on Examination of a Child Witness, 2000)	Permits in-camera testimony, videotaped depositions, the use of screens/CCTV, and child-friendly questioning; recognizes hearsay exceptions for a child’s out-of-court statements showing reliability.
R.A. 10951 (2017)	Updated fines & indexation of monetary penalties in the RPC; imprisonment periods for physical-injury articles remain unchanged.
R.A. 9262 (2004) – VAWC Act	Adds psychological & physical violence by a person with whom the child has or had a dating/sexual relationship or common child; may overlap where the abuser is the child’s father/step-father or mother’s partner.

Hierarchy & overlap. R.A. 7610 is a special penal law. If the information alleges that the injuries perpetrated on the minor were attended by abuse, cruelty or exploitation, the charge is usually under § 10(a) of R.A. 7610; jurisprudence (e.g., People v. Quidet, G.R. 170289, 23 Feb 2009) favors applying § 10(a) even to a single act of hitting that causes slight injuries, so long as the child “suffered physical harm.” Where the facts do not show abuse or cruelty (rare), prosecutors may fall back on Articles 262-266 RPC with the minor-victim circumstance treated as an aggravating circumstance under Art. 14(3) (disregard of victim’s age).

2. Elements & Penalties (quick chart)

A. Serious Physical Injuries (Art. 263 RPC / § 10(a) R.A. 7610)

Offender wounds, beats, assaults, or administers injurious substances; and
Result is: (a) illness/incapacity > 90 days; or (b) mutilation; or (c) loss of use of any sense or organ; or (d) incapacity > 30 days with permanent disfigurement. Penalty: Prision mayor (medium) to prision mayor (maximum). If victim is a child and charge is under § 10(a), the penalty is raised to reclusion temporal (minimum to medium).

B. Less-Serious Physical Injuries (Art. 265 RPC) – Incapacity for labor or medical attendance 10-30 days. Penalty: Arresto mayor (§ 10 separately inflates to prision correccional).

C. Slight Physical Injuries (Art. 266 RPC) – Incapacity ≤ 9 days or no incapacity but ill-treated. Penalty: Arresto menor or fine ≤ ₱40,000 (post-R.A. 10951). If charged under R.A. 7610, penalty becomes arresto mayor.

D. Mutilation (Art. 262) – e.g., deliberate castration or amputation. Penalty: Reclusion temporal to reclusion perpetua. Victim’s minority remains an aggravating circumstance and may justify § 10(a) charge for “abuse” if other requirements met.

3. Aggravating, Qualifying & Justifying Circumstances

Minority of victim (Art. 14(3) RPC) – automatically generic aggravating if case is filed purely under RPC.
Relationship (parent, guardian, teacher) – may qualify as “person having care or custody,” rigorously punished by § 10(a).
Treachery or Abuse of Superior Strength – if proven, may qualify the act to attempted murder/homicide rather than physical injuries.
Parental Discipline Defense. Art. 220 Civil Code & Art. 233 Family Code recognize “parental authority,” but Supreme Court has ruled that violent or excessive corporal punishment constitutes abuse (see People v. Abellanosa, G.R. 19830, 10 Oct 2012). The force must be moderate, reasonable, and corrective; otherwise criminal liability attaches.

4. Jurisdiction, Venue & Prescriptive Period

Court: Regional Trial Court acting as Family Court (R.A. 8369). Where the injury is slight (imposable penalty ≤ 6 months + 1 day), the case is filed in the Municipal Trial Court but will be raffled to the judge designated as Family Court.
Venue: Where the offense was committed or where the child resides at the time of commission, whichever is more convenient to the child (Rule 111 § 15).
Prescription: Serious injuries – 15 years; Less-Serious – 10 years; Slight – 2 months (Arts. 90-91 RPC). Under R.A. 7610, the period is tied to the equivalent RPC classification before the 1-degree elevation, so the same figures apply.

5. Investigative & Procedural Safeguards

Police handling: Women & Children Protection Desks (NAPOLCOM Memo Cir. 2001-009); immediate coordination with DSWD social worker.
Medical exam: ‘Medico-legal’ report within 24 hours; follow-up orthopedic or neurological evaluation for serious injuries.
Interview: One-time forensic interview (“renewed by necessity” rule) in a child-friendly room; presence of parent, guardian or social worker.
Bail: Generally bailable (except mutilation). Notice to the child’s parents/DSWD is essential before release of accused on bail.
Testimony: A.M. 00-4-07-SC allows oath by “promise,” leading questions, and video-link testimony if the child is below 18 or has developmental disability.
Plea bargaining: Permitted (A.M. 18-03-16-SC), but the child’s best interests must be weighed and DSWD consent is advisable.

6. Evidence Essentials

Age of victim – PSA-issued Birth Certificate or school records; absence is allowed if age is admitted on record.
Degree of injury – Certified medical certificate specifying days of incapacity and medical attendance. Jurisprudence disallows approximation (“about 30 days”); courts rely on the certificate’s precise wording.
Intent: Physical-injury felonies are mala in se; intent is presumed from the act, but the defense may rebut (e.g., accident, self-defense).

7. Civil & Protective Remedies

Civil liability ex delicto – Automatically adjudicated in the criminal case (Art. 100 RPC). Damages recoverable: actual medical expenses (receipts), moral damages (Art. 2219(10) NCC), exemplary damages if act attended by aggravating circumstances, and temperate damages where actual proof is scant but injury is evident.
Protective orders – Family Court may issue a Temporary or Permanent Protection Order to bar the accused from contacting or approaching the child (drawn by analogy from R.A. 9262 and A.M. 04-10-11-SC).
Support & restitution – Art. 195 FC applies; prosecution may move to garnish accused’s property to answer for therapy or rehabilitation costs.

8. Selected Jurisprudence

Case / G.R. No.	Ruling & Take-away
People v. Quidet, G.R. 170289 (2009)	Slapping & kicking 11-year-old child causing 6-day incapacity held § 10(a) child abuse even though injuries were “slight.” Elevates penalty by 1 degree.
People v. Go, G.R. 197449 (2016)	Clarified that no exploitative intent is needed; any act that results in physical harm to a child is punishable under § 10(a).
People v. Abellanosa, G.R. 19830 (2012)	Excessive corporal punishment not shielded by parental authority; conviction for serious physical injuries with aggravating circumstance of minority.
People v. Ramos, G.R. 184992 (2014)	Evidence of medical treatment > 30 days must be specific; “about two months” insufficient to prove serious injuries.
People v. Lagasca, G.R. 201179 (2021)	Family Court retains jurisdiction even if the charge is attempted homicide so long as one victim is a minor.

9. Common Practice Tips

Charge under R.A. 7610 § 10(a) whenever there is any physical harm plus indicia of cruelty or maltreatment; draft the information to allege “physical injuries constituting child abuse.”
Attach medico-legal & psychosocial report to the record before filing; absence is curable but delays protection measures.
Consider multiple counts. Continuous beatings over several days may be charged as separate acts (see People v. Bubang, 2014).
DSWD presence is mandatory during custodial investigation and line-up; violation may ground a motion to suppress any admission by the child-victim or sibling-witness.
Alternative dispute resolution is barred – Cases involving minors are expressly excluded from barangay conciliation (Lupong Tagapamayapa) under § 408(2)(b) of the Local Government Code.

10. Emerging Issues & Reforms

Total ban on corporal punishment – The “Positive Discipline” bill (pending under various Congresses) seeks to criminalize spanking outright; once enacted, it will re-shape the parental-discipline defense landscape.
Restorative justice pilots – While R.A. 9344 focuses on child offenders, Family Courts have begun testing restorative approaches for child victims (e.g., mediated apology with psychosocial support).
Digital evidence – With widespread CCTV/phone video, authentication under Rules 901-902 becomes routine; counsel should be fluent with A.M. 01-7-01-SC (Rules on Electronic Evidence).
Statistical trend – PNP-WCPC data show a steady annual increase in § 10(a) filings; however, conviction rates remain < 40 % largely due to recantation, highlighting the need for child-friendly sworn statements (JSCC “One-Stop Shop for OSEC & Abuse” Protocol, 2023).

Conclusion

When an adult inflicts physical harm on a minor in the Philippines, the law now presumes child abuse and exacts a heavier penalty than ordinary physical-injury felonies. Prosecutors must decide early whether § 10(a) of R.A. 7610 is proper, marshal precise medical proof of the degree of injury, and ensure the child’s testimony is secured through protective procedures laid down by the Supreme Court. Defense counsel, on the other hand, should scrutinize the intent to degrade or demean element and the sufficiency of medical attendance evidence. Through the interplay of the RPC, special child-protection statutes, and a robust body of jurisprudence, Philippine courts endeavor to balance parens patriae with due-process guarantees while ensuring that no child is left unshielded from violence in any form.