---
title: '05 Criminal Law & Policy II'
disqus: hackmd
---

:::info
ST2502 Computer Law & Investigation
:::

CLI Lecture 05 Criminal Law & Policy II
===

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## Table of Contents

[TOC]

Search, Seizure & Assistance
---
- under CPC, police have auto powers of search if investigating arrestable offence
- may w/o search warrant enter any place & search for docs/things necessary for investigation
- if high ranking police officer has reasonable cause for suspecting stolen property concealed in any place, may search w/o warrant

### Police powers of search
- searching for persons
- section 77 of CPC
- if person acting on warrant/any police office has reason to believe that person to be arrested is in particular place, person residing thr/having charge of place is required on demand
- to allow person making arrest free entry to place
- provide all reasonable facilities to enable search to be conducted
- if entry cannot be gained, person making arrest may "break open any outer/inner door/window" once notified person residing in/having charged to residence
- of his authority
- purpose of search warrant

### Power to access comp
- S39 (1)
- police investigating arrestable offence may access & inspect comp or search data in that comp, suspected to be used in offence
- S39 (2)
- police can require assistance from anybody using comp in connection with offence or any person in charge of comp
- S39 (3)
- penalty for failure to comply - find <$5000 or jail <=6 months or both

### Power to access decryption info
- S40 (2)(a)
- police investigating arrestable offence entitled to access info, code or tech for unscrambling encrypted data into readable text for investigation
- S40 (2)(b)
- police can require anybody to provide tech assisstance for purpose above to unscramble encrypted data
- S40 (2)(c)
- police can require anybody to be in possession of decrypted info to grant access
- S40 (3)
- penalty for failure to comply - find <$10000 or jail <=3years or both

### Search & seizure of comp articles
- application for search warrant
- section 26 CPC
- warrant issued by court to commissioner of police & officer designated by name
- warrant will
- specify place to search
- prescribe manner to conduct search
- authorise seizure of materials/articles sought
- list of info in search warrant
- search all electronic, magnetic, optical, electrochemical or other data processing device which includes but doesnt limit itself
- CPU
- disks
- operating logs
- digital cams
- keyboard & printer
- software operating manuals
- exception in obtaining warrant S32
- in certain cirumstances, impractical to require police to obtain warrant for search premises
- good grounds for believing reason of delay such property likely to be removed
- info must be received by officer not lower than sergeant rank

Constitutional rights of accused
---
- highlights under article 9 of constitution
- arrested person has right to be informed of grounds of arrest
- must be allowed to consult & defended by legal practitioner of choice
- if arrested & not released, must be produced before magistrate w/o unreasonable delay & in any case within 48 hours
- if unlawfully detained, complaint may be made to High Court which can order him to be produced before court & release him
- procedure called application for Habeas Corpus
- writ requiring person to be brought before judge/court

### Article 9 of Constitution
- criminal pre-trial process set out in following procedural law
- constitution of the republic of sg
- criminal procedure code

#### Liberty of person
- no person deprived of life/personal liberty save in accordance with law
- relates to phy life & quality of life & liberty of individual
- whr complaint made to high court & unlawfully detained, court shall inquire into complaint and unless satisfied that detention is lawful, shall order him to be produced before court & released
- high court must investigate abt
- when arrested, shd be informed asap of grounds of arrest & allowed to consult & defended by legal practitioner of choice
- __issue of right to counsel & discovery__
- whr person arrested & unreleased, shall w/o unreasonable delay & within 48h be produced before magistrate & not further detained w/o magistrate's custody

#### Controversies
- right to counsel - If a person who is arrested wishes to consult a legal practitioner of his choice, he is, entitled to have this constitutional right granted to him by the authority who has custody of him after his arrest and this right must be granted to him within a reasonable time after his arrest
- no need to provide counsel immediately upon arrest
- what is reasonable?
- when? when investigation completed
- no obligation to inform & advise person under custody of his right to counsel
- no need to inform accused right to seek counsel
- providing counsel might hamper police investigation - lawyer don't have to sit with person during interrogation
- __However__ 6th amendment of US consitution states that
- indiv must be clearly informed of righ to counsel
- if he exercises his right, questioning ceased till lawyer present
- illegally obtained evidence
- Eg. drilling hole into hotel room to record adulterous activities of cheating spouse
- admissible as long as relevant


- issue of discovery
- no legal obligation to disclose info yo accused
- lack of info makes it difficult for def counsel to advise accused to preperly prepare his def
- what def lawyers need most are statements from clients & witnesses

### Statements
#### Prosecution's Response
- if accused telling truth, shld be able to recollect what he told police
- use of statements
- prosecution expected to impeach (call into question) credibility of accused if he deviates from statements
- means he's lying
- if judge agrees with impeachment, has direct impact on accused's case & def
- __Example__
- sg doc helping his American partner dupe the authorities into issuing him a pass to work here
- confessed to police that he submitted his blood instead of his HIV-positive partner's
- during court he retracted on his confessions to police and said they were false
- he got cowabunga-ed
- Ler was convicted and sentenced for abetment of cheating and giving a false statement to a public servant

#### Police Statements
- types of statements
- 1st info report
- witness statements from person(s) acquainted with facts of case
- cautioned statement - AKA confession
- statements must be made w/o threat, inducement or promise

__Example__

### Charging Accused
- once police fin investigation, investigation officer will submit investi. papers to AGC for public prosecutor to consider whether to initiate crminal prosecution
- once decison made, case prepared for trial
- charges then drafted

#### Drafting Charge
- charge notifies accused of offence to be prosecuted
- fundamental to ensure that charge is clear & precise for accused to know what he's accused of so he can answer to the case

#### What's in a Charge
- must state
- accused name
- gender/age
- NRIC
- date, time & place of offence
- provision of law & nature of alleged offence
- manner of committing offence
- punishment of offence

#### General Rules
- 1 offence per charge
- amendments to charge
- any amendments/irregularities will not invalidate proceedings
- unless failure of justice
- sometimes "joinder" of charges
- Eg. similar offences permitted provided accused not prejudiced
- ???? idk
- often used in "plea bargaining"
- certain charges proceeded upon & certain taken into consideration
- ??? idk too

### Trial Procedure
- criminal trial conducted in diff ways in State Courts & high court
- high court normally preceded by committal hearing/prelim inquiry conducted by magistrate to determine whether there's sufficient grounds to commit to trial
- cases tried by state courts don't need commital hearings/prelim inquiries
- called __summary trials__
- dealt with in 2 ways

#### Summary Trials
- accused brought before court, charge read & ask if he plead guilty
- if pleads guilty,
- prosecution reads statement of facts, charge
- he admit facts, charge
- court accepts plea, record it after ascertaining he understands the nature & consequence of this admission
- convict him
- plea of mitigation made on his behalf
- sentence passed & trial ends
- if plead not guilty - silent also means not guilty
- full length trial starts
- prosecution opens case by calling witnesses
- ea witness examined, cross-examind and re-examined
- throughout trial prosecution has to prove case beyond reasonable doubt
- at conclusion of prosec's case, accused may submit that there's "no case to answer"
- if prosec failed to make out all ingredients of charge
- prosec may reply to submission
- both arguments presented
- court then decide
- if satisfied prosec has not made up prima facie case, acquit the accused (not guilty)
- if court decices prosec made out a case,


#### High Court Trials
- once magistrate concluded committal hearings is satified & sufficient evidence to commit to high court trial, trial will be fixed in high court
- procedure similar to full-length summarry trial
- minor variations

### Post Trail - Appeals
- prosec or accused may file "notice of appeal"
- accused may appeal against both conviction & sentence
- prosec may appeal against accused acquittal/sentence if manifestly inadequate
- __Example__
- NUS undergrad who molested woman will not begin probation, pending outcome of appeal case

###### tags: `CLI` `DISM` `School` `Notes`