To be held liable for lascivious conduct under Sec. 5(b), Art. III of RA 7610, the
following elements of Acts of Lasciviousness under Art. 336 of the RPC must be
met:
1. That the offender commits any act of lasciviousness or
lewdness;
2. That it is done under any of the following circumstances:
a)
b)
c)
d)
Through force, threat or intimidation;
When the offended party is deprived of reason or otherwise unconscious;
By means of fraudulent machination or grave abuse of authority;
When the offended party is under twelve (12) years of age or is demented,
even though none of the circumstances mentioned above be present.
3.
4. That the offended party is another person of either sex.[25]
In addition to the elements under Art. 336 of the RPC, the following requisites for
sexual abuse under Sec. 5(b), Art. III of RA 7610, must also be established to wit:
1. The accused commits the act of sexual intercourse or lascivious
conduct.
2. The said act is performed with a child exploited in prostitution or
subjected to other sexual abuse.
3. The child, whether male or female, is below 18 years of age.[26]
In the present case, the Information in Criminal Case No. 275 7-M-2005 specifically
stated: (1) that "AAA" was a nine-year old minor at the time of the incident; and
(2) that Padlan committed acts of lasciviousness against "AAA" by touching her
vagina. Contrary to the ruling of the RTC which was affirmed by the CA, we find
that the elements of lascivious conduct under Sec. 5(b), Art. III of RA 7610 have
been sufficiently alleged in the Information and duly proven during trial.
Sec. 2(h), of the Implementing Rules and Regulations of RA 7610 defines lascivious
conduct as:
[T]he intentional touching, either directly or through clothing, of the genitalia,
anus, groin, breast, inner thigh, or buttocks, or the introduction of any object into
the genitalia, anus or mouth, of any person, whether of the same or opposite sex,
with an intent to abuse, humiliate, harass, degrade, or arouse or gratify the sexual
desire of any person, bestiality, masturbation, lascivious exhibition of the genitals
or pubic area of a person. (Emphasis supplied)