Short answer. Under Article 54 of the Revised Penal Code, an accomplice in a frustrated felony receives the penalty next lower in degree than the penalty prescribed for the frustrated crime. Because the frustrated stage already carries a reduced penalty compared to the consummated offense, the accomplice's penalty is set further down the scale.
What the law says
The penalty next lower in degree than that prescribed by law for the frustrated felony shall be imposed upon the accomplices in the commission of a frustrated felony.
Revised Penal Code, Article 54 — Penalty For Accomplices In A Frustrated Crime. Read the full provision →
The frustrated stage as the baseline
Article 54 of the Revised Penal Code starts from the penalty for the frustrated felony — not the consummated one. A frustrated crime is one where the offender performs all acts of execution that would produce the crime, but the result does not follow because of causes independent of the offender's will. The frustrated stage typically carries a penalty one degree lower than the consummated offense. Article 54 then reduces the accomplice's penalty one degree further, to the degree next lower than the frustrated crime's penalty.
Comparing the three stages for an accomplice
The Revised Penal Code's graduated structure becomes clearer by comparing an accomplice across the three stages of the same crime. For a consummated crime, the accomplice under Article 52 receives the penalty one degree below the consummated penalty. For a frustrated crime, Article 54 places the accomplice one degree below the frustrated penalty — which is itself one degree below the consummated penalty, putting the frustrated-crime accomplice two degrees below the consummated standard. For an attempted crime, Article 56 places the accomplice one degree below the attempt penalty — itself typically two degrees below the consummated standard.
Accomplice versus accessory in a frustrated crime
In a frustrated crime, both accomplices and accessories receive penalties below the frustrated crime's penalty — but at different depths. The accomplice under Article 54 is penalized one degree below the frustrated crime's penalty. The accessory under Article 55 is penalized two degrees below the frustrated crime's penalty. Accomplices — who participated before or during the crime — are treated as more culpable than accessories, who only become involved after the crime is committed. The one-degree difference between them reflects this distinction in timing and in the nature of each party's contribution to the wrong.
How the Indeterminate Sentence Law applies
After identifying the applicable penalty band for the accomplice in a frustrated crime, the Indeterminate Sentence Law determines how the court sets the actual sentence. The minimum of the indeterminate sentence must fall within the range of the penalty one degree lower than the accomplice's penalty, while the maximum falls within the accomplice's penalty range itself. The court adjusts within these ranges by weighing any mitigating or aggravating circumstances. The result is a sentence with both a minimum term — upon completing which the offender may apply for parole — and a maximum term.