PENAL CODE of the Democratic Republic of Timor Leste Article 17. Error regarding circumstances of the act 1. Error regarding elements of the law or acts related to a legally defined crime or prohibition that would reasonably be considered essential for the perpetrator to have knowledge of in order to comprehend the unlawfulness of the act excludes intent. 2. The system described in the previous subarticle includes error regarding existence of assumptions of a cause for exclusion of unlawfulness or guilt. 3. Negligent conduct shall be punishable whenever provided for by law and the respective assumptions are present. Article 18. Error regarding unlawfulness 1. Lack of knowledge of the law does not exclude the unlawfulness of any conduct that violates it. 2. An error regarding unlawfulness, if unavoidable, excludes guilt. 3. A penalty may be considered extraordinarily mitigated when the error regarding unlawfulness is avoidable. Article 19. Aggravation due to results When the penalty applicable to an act is aggravated according to the result caused, said aggravation is always conditioned by the possibility of attributing said result to the perpetrator at least through negligence. Article 20. Exemption from criminal liability by reason of age 1. Minors under 16 are exempt from criminal liability. 2. For persons over 16 years of age and less than 21, the law shall determine specific provisions concerning application and execution of criminal penalties in any and all cases not provided for in specific legislation. Article 21. Exemption from criminal liability by reason of insanity 1. A person is exempt from criminal liability if, due to a mental disorder, he or she is incapable, at the time of committing the act, to comprehend its unlawfulness or to decide accordingly. 2. A person may be declared exempt from criminal liability when, by force of a mental disorder, has, at the time the crime is committed, significantly diminished capacity to appreciate the unlawfulness of such an act or to act accordingly. 3. The proven inability of the perpetrator to be influenced by penalties may be an indication of the situation provided for in the subarticle above. 4. Criminal liability is not excluded when the mental disorder was caused by the perpetrator with the intent to commit the act. CHAPTER II FORMS OF CRIME Article 22. Preparatory acts Preparatory acts are not punishable, except as otherwise provided in the law. Article 23. Attempt A crime is attempted whenever the person who has decided to commit it initiates its execution by undertaking, wholly or in part, the acts objectively required to cause the 11