Supreme Court upholds prison sentence of man guilty of extramarital affair

Marital infidelity is a form of "psychological violence," the Supreme Court (SC) said as it upheld the conviction of a man who had left his wife and fathered three children with his mistress.

In a September 8 decision, the First Division affirmed with modification the conviction of the man for violating the Anti-Violence Against Women and Their Children Act of 2004.

He was sentenced to six months to eight years of imprisonment and ordered to pay a P100,000 fine and P25,000 as moral damages.

In addition, the SC ordered the man to undergo "mandatory psychological counselling or psychiatric treatment" and report his compliance to the tribunal after completing it.

"The prosecution has established beyond reasonable doubt that [the husband] committed the crime of psychological violence, through his acts of marital infidelity, which caused mental or emotional suffering on the part of [the wife]," the court said.

The specific offense was Section 5(i) of the anti-VAWC law: "causing mental or emotional anguish, public ridicule or humiliation to the woman or her child, including, but not limited to, repeated verbal and emotional abuse, and denial of financial support or custody of minor children of access to the woman's child/children."

The case that reached the highest Philippine court stemmed from allegations by the wife that her husband committed psychological abuse against her by having an affair "with their best friend" and having three children with her.

The wife initially filed a concubinage complaint but it was settled after the husband and the mistress promised they would no longer see each other, according to court records.

However, the husband returned to the mistress shortly after that. The wife sought the help of the National Bureau of Investigation and even filed a petition for the writ of habeas corpus, believing the mistress was keeping the husband against his will.

But the Court of Appeals dismissed the petition because the husband was found to have left his wife on his own volition, according to court records.

During trial for the psychological abuse case, the husband confirmed he left because he "cannot stand her character anymore," and acknowledged their separation affected her emotionally and psychologically.

The wife said she was emotionally and psychologically hurt, suffered from insomnia and asthma, and took antidepressant and sleeping pills.

The regional trial court convicted the husband in a decision that was subsequently affirmed by the Court of Appeals (CA).

In its decision, the SC said the CA was correct. The SC said the wife's testimony of suffering mental and emotional anguish was "categorical and straightforward."

"Marital infidelity, which is a form of psychological violence, is the
proximate cause of [the wife's] emotional anguish and mental suffering, to the point that even her health condition was adversely affected," the SC said.

The decision was penned by Chief Justice Diosdado Peralta with concurrences from Associate Justices Alfredo Benjamin Caguioa, Amy Lazaro-Javier, Mario Lopez, and the now-retired Jose Reyes, Jr.—LDF, GMA News