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# Criminal responsibility and inimputabilidad (Penal Code art. 33)

- Topic

A person is inimputable if, when acting, a disorder or immaturity left them unable to see the act was unlawful or to act on that understanding.

Updated Nov 5, 2026

## Key points

- Inimputable: cannot understand the unlawfulness or control their conduct, at the time of the act (art. 33).
- Causes: psychological immaturity, mental disorder, sociocultural diversity or similar states.
- Self-induced disorder planned in advance: no inimputability.
- Consequence: a security measure, not a sentence (arts. 69 to 78).
- The expert does not decide whether the accused is imputable: the judge does (Law 906, art. 421).

## What it is

Imputability is the capacity to understand that conduct is unlawful and to act in accordance with that understanding. The Colombian Penal Code (art. 33) declares inimputable anyone who, at the time of the typical and unlawful conduct, lacked that capacity because of psychological immaturity, mental disorder, sociocultural diversity or similar states. A person who deliberately brought on their own mental disorder beforehand is not inimputable. An inimputable person receives a security measure, not a sentence (arts. 69 to 78). The judge declares inimputability: the expert describes the disorder and its effect on those capacities but may not say whether the accused is imputable (Law 906 of 2004, art. 421).

## Key facts

- Art. 33: inimputability is judged at the time of the act and needs a cause (psychological immaturity, mental disorder, sociocultural diversity or similar states) and an effect (unable to understand the unlawfulness or to act on that understanding).
- Art. 33, second paragraph: whoever planned their own mental disorder in advance is not inimputable, for example becoming intoxicated in order to commit the crime.
- Art. 69: security measures: committal to a psychiatric facility or suitable clinic, committal to a study or work centre, and supervised liberty.
- Art. 70: permanent mental disorder: psychiatric committal, up to 20 years and never longer than the maximum sentence for the crime; it ends with rehabilitation.
- Art. 71: transient mental disorder with a pathological basis: committal, up to 10 years; art. 75: if the transient disorder has no pathological basis, there is no security measure.
- Law 906, art. 465: treatment of people found inimputable because of mental disorder is the responsibility of the General System of Social Security in Health.

## The inimputable person's situation and its consequence in the Penal Code

| Situation | Consequence |
| --- | --- |
| Permanent mental disorder | Psychiatric committal, up to 20 years (art. 70) |
| Transient mental disorder with a pathological basis | Committal, up to 10 years (art. 71) |
| Transient mental disorder without a pathological basis | No security measure (art. 75) |
| Inimputable without a mental disorder | Committal to a study or work centre, up to 10 years (art. 72) |
| Disorder planned in advance | No inimputability (art. 33) |

## Next step: what to do and document

- When treating a detainee or accused person with psychiatric symptoms, treat them and record their mental state in detail, with date and time: it may be the best evidence of their state near the time of the act.
- When an authority asks for a forensic psychiatric examination, answer about the diagnosis and its effect on understanding and self-control, not with the word «inimputable».
- Record alcohol or other substance use and whether it was voluntary, because a disorder planned in advance rules out inimputability.
- When the judge orders committal, coordinate with the insurer (EPS) and the provider (IPS), because the health system carries out the measure.

## Legal framework in Colombia

- Penal Code (Law 599 of 2000), art. 33 (amended by Law 2098 of 2021, art. 26) and arts. 69 to 78; item 4 of art. 69 (return to one's own cultural setting) was struck down in Ruling C-370 of 2002.
- Law 906 of 2004, art. 421 (the expert gives no opinion on inimputability), art. 344 (if the defence pleads inimputability, it gives the prosecution the expert examinations) and arts. 465 to 470 (carrying out the measures).
- Official text checked on 2026-11-05 at funcionpublica.gov.co (Law 599 of 2000 and Law 906 of 2004).

## Test yourself

Think of the answer, then tap the question to see it.

## At what point in time is inimputability assessed?

At the time of the conduct (Penal Code, art. 33), not at trial; that is why clinical records made close to the event are valuable.

## Is someone who gets drunk on purpose in order to commit a crime inimputable?

No. Art. 33 excludes a person who planned their own mental disorder in advance.

## Which measure applies when inimputability comes from a transient mental disorder without a pathological basis?

No security measure (Penal Code, art. 75).

## May the psychiatric expert answer whether the accused is imputable?

No. Law 906 (art. 421) does not allow questions to the expert on whether the accused is imputable or not; the expert explains the disorder and its effects.

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## Connections

## Related 3

- [The forensic psychiatric evaluation](https://durgical.com/en/forensic-medicine/the-forensic-psychiatric-evaluation/)
- [Malingering in forensic settings](https://durgical.com/en/forensic-medicine/malingering-in-forensic-settings/)
- [The doctor as expert witness (perito) under Law 906 of 2004](https://durgical.com/en/forensic-medicine/the-doctor-as-expert-witness-under-law-906-of-2004/)

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Educational content on forensic and legal medicine; not legal advice and no substitute for the technical guides of Colombia's National Institute of Legal Medicine and Forensic Sciences. Laws change: each page links the official text and says when it was last checked. For a real case, follow the guide in force and ask the competent authority.

Sources: [Ley 599 de 2000, Código Penal](https://www.funcionpublica.gov.co/eva/gestornormativo/norma.php?i=6388) (Función Pública, Gestor Normativo, 2000); [Ley 906 de 2004, Código de Procedimiento Penal](https://www.funcionpublica.gov.co/eva/gestornormativo/norma.php?i=14787) (Función Pública, Gestor Normativo, 2004).

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