The case of Camilo Calvo has awakened the interest of Guatemalans to know what the crime of patricidehow the legislation defines it and which family members are included within this legal figure.
According to him article 131 of Penal Codeincurs patricide who, knowing the family bond, causes the death of any of his ascendants or descendants, his spouse or the person with whom he has marital life.
ARTICLE 131. Whoever, knowing the link, kills any ascendant or
descendant, his spouse or the person with whom he has a marital life, will be punished as a parricide with imprisonment of 25 to 50 years.
The death penalty will be imposed, instead of the maximum prison sentence, if due to the circumstances of the act, the manner in which it was carried out and the determining motives, a greater and particular danger is revealed in the agent. Those who do not receive the death penalty for this crime may not be granted a reduction in sentence for any reason.
Penal Code of Guatemala, Chapter II, Qualified Homicides
To explain how this criminal figure is interpreted and who is protected by the law, Free press He consulted specialists in criminal law.
What is patricide?
Juan Pablo Poroj, advisor to the Technical Division of the Institute of Public Criminal Defense (IDPP), explains that patricide consists of cause the death of a member of one’s own family when there are any of the links established by law.
“Parricide is the death caused to an ascendant, a descendant, the spouse or the person with whom one has a marital life, as long as the person responsible knows that link,” summarizes the specialist.
What family members does the law protect?
Although article 131 of the Penal Code mentions only the ascendants, descendants, the spouse and the person with whom one has a marital life, Poroj explains that ancestors are relatives from previous generations of a person, while descendants are those who come from that person.
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Citing the Royal Academy of the Spanish Language (RAE), Poroj clarifies that “the term ascendant refers to the set of relatives prior to a person, even when they are not mentioned explicitly but in a general way. On the other hand, the term descendant term refers to those who will come or descend after him.”
Taking the above as a starting point, then, the ascendants comprise:
- Father and mother.
- Grandfather and grandmother.
- Great-grandfather and great-grandmother.
- Great-grandparents and previous generations.
And, the descendants include:
- Children.
- Grandchildren.
- Great-grandchildren.
- Great-grandchildren and subsequent generations.
On the other hand, the Penal Code also protects the spouse and the person with whom they have marital life, that is, when there is a couple living together without a formal marriage.
Why does patricide have a greater penalty?
Since patricide falls within the chapter of qualified homicides of the Penal Code, it receives a more severe sanction than that planned for homicide. Poroj explains that the element that aggravates this crime is the family or marital bond between the victim and the aggressor.
“The bond of blood or marriage is the element that differentiates patricide from other crimes against life. As an example, he mentions the case of a son who intentionally causes the death of his father or mother, or vice versa.”
Juan Pablo Poroj, advisor to the Technical Division of the Institute of Public Criminal Defense (IDPP)
Furthermore, article 131 of the Penal Code establishes that: “he will be punished as a parricide with prison from 25 to 50 years. It will be imposed death penaltyinstead of the maximum prison term. Those who do not receive the death penalty for this crime, they cannot be granted a reduction in sentence for no reason.”
The IDPP advisor clarifies that, although the article still contemplates the death penalty for cases considered more dangerous, that sanction is not currently applied in Guatemala.
How is it different from homicide and patricide?
The criminal lawyer explains that the main difference lies in the bond between the victim and the aggressor.
While the homicide punishes death of a person without there being a special aggravating circumstance, the patricide requires proving that the victim was an ancestora descendantthe spouse or the person with whom the accused had a marital life, and that the accused knew of that relationship.