Legal Definitions - poena ordinaria

Poena Ordinaria

Poena ordinaria refers to a standard or ordinary punishment that is specifically prescribed by law for a particular offense. It is the default penalty established by statute, meaning the law itself dictates the nature or minimum extent of the punishment, rather than leaving it entirely to the discretion of a judge or court within a broad range.

Here are some examples:

• Example 1: Fixed Fine for a Traffic Infraction

  Imagine a jurisdiction where the law states that parking in a no-parking zone carries a mandatory fine of $75. This is a poena ordinaria because the punishment (the $75 fine) is not determined by a judge's individual assessment of the situation, but is instead a fixed penalty directly prescribed by the traffic code for that specific violation.

• Example 2: Mandatory Minimum Sentence for a Crime

  Consider a law that imposes a mandatory minimum sentence of five years in prison for individuals convicted of a specific drug trafficking offense. This mandatory minimum is a poena ordinaria because the law itself sets the lowest possible punishment that a judge can impose, removing discretion to sentence below that threshold. The punishment is "fixed by law" at a minimum level.

• Example 3: Statutory Penalty for Regulatory Non-Compliance

  A company fails to file its annual environmental compliance report by the deadline. The relevant environmental statute specifies that such a failure results in an automatic penalty of $1,000 per day until the report is filed. This daily penalty is a poena ordinaria because the amount and nature of the punishment are directly dictated by the statute for that specific regulatory breach, rather than being a discretionary amount decided by an enforcement agency or court.