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Dec 20, 2010
Criminal Procedure Code changes take effect Jan 2
THE revised Criminal Procedure Code and the new Coroners Act will take effect on Jan 2, the Ministry of Law said in a statement yesterday.
The revised Code was signed into law by President S R Nathan in June this year. Among other things, it will give judges the discretion to pass lighter, community-based sentences on young offenders or those who commit minor offences.
This means judges are no longer restricted to sentencing such offenders to jail or a fine, which could have an adverse effect on their jobs and families. Other sentencing options include medical treatment and community work for offenders.
Another key change to the Code will allow defence lawyers access to all statements made by suspects to police - a process that is known as discovery, common in civil cases. It will apply to all criminal cases in the High Court and to most offences tried in the district courts.
The change will address a long-standing complaint from lawyers that it is difficult to conduct a defence when all they have is the first information report (usually a police report), the accused's cautioned statement (in which a warning has been given to him to state a response to the charge), and certain other documents.
The changes were the result of efforts that began in December 2008 to revamp rules guiding the criminal justice system here.
The new Coroners Act, meanwhile, will see a shift in the present fault-finding nature of a Coroner's Inquiry to a fact-finding one. It will also widen the technical expertise available to the Coroner, as well as the scope of his jurisdiction.
The Coroner is currently able to hold an inquiry when a body is found in Singapore or when death occurs here. The new Act will extend his jurisdiction to cases where the cause of death occurs here or where death occurs or results from an occurrence on board a Singapore-registered civilian vehicle.�
One example would be when a person dies on board a Singapore Airlines flight, or where a person dies as a result of something he ingests during that flight.�
The Coroner will also be able to conduct an inquiry into a death even without the body, for instance if the body was destroyed.
Criminal Procedure Code changes take effect Jan 2
THE revised Criminal Procedure Code and the new Coroners Act will take effect on Jan 2, the Ministry of Law said in a statement yesterday.
The revised Code was signed into law by President S R Nathan in June this year. Among other things, it will give judges the discretion to pass lighter, community-based sentences on young offenders or those who commit minor offences.
This means judges are no longer restricted to sentencing such offenders to jail or a fine, which could have an adverse effect on their jobs and families. Other sentencing options include medical treatment and community work for offenders.
Another key change to the Code will allow defence lawyers access to all statements made by suspects to police - a process that is known as discovery, common in civil cases. It will apply to all criminal cases in the High Court and to most offences tried in the district courts.
The change will address a long-standing complaint from lawyers that it is difficult to conduct a defence when all they have is the first information report (usually a police report), the accused's cautioned statement (in which a warning has been given to him to state a response to the charge), and certain other documents.
The changes were the result of efforts that began in December 2008 to revamp rules guiding the criminal justice system here.
The new Coroners Act, meanwhile, will see a shift in the present fault-finding nature of a Coroner's Inquiry to a fact-finding one. It will also widen the technical expertise available to the Coroner, as well as the scope of his jurisdiction.
The Coroner is currently able to hold an inquiry when a body is found in Singapore or when death occurs here. The new Act will extend his jurisdiction to cases where the cause of death occurs here or where death occurs or results from an occurrence on board a Singapore-registered civilian vehicle.�
One example would be when a person dies on board a Singapore Airlines flight, or where a person dies as a result of something he ingests during that flight.�
The Coroner will also be able to conduct an inquiry into a death even without the body, for instance if the body was destroyed.
