Uncontrolled Fear: Exempting Circumstance

For uncontrollable fear to be considered as an exempting circumstance, it must appear that the threat that caused the uncontrollable fear is of such gravity and imminence that the ordinary man would have succumbed to it. It should be based on a real, imminent or reasonable fear for one’s life or limb. A mere threat of a future injury is not enough. It should not be speculative, fanciful, or remote.

A person invoking uncontrollable fear must show therefore that the compulsion was such that it reduced him to a mere instrument acting not only without will but against his will as well. It must be of such character as to leave no opportunity to the accused for escape. (People vs. Concepcion, G.R. No. 136844, 01 August 2002, 386 SCRA 74)