04-15-2022, 04:02 PM
(This post was last modified: 04-16-2022, 08:59 AM by superadmin.)
Sam’s defence is bare denial, afterthought, says High Court
PETALING JAYA: The High Court convicted Sam Ke Ting for reckless driving that resulted in the deaths of eight teenagers on modified bicycles, or “basikal lajak”, because she failed to put up her defence at the prosecution stage of her trial.
Judge Abu Bakar Katar said the 27-year-old clerk’s unsworn statement from the dock after the court told her to enter her defence was a bare denial and an afterthought.
“The respondent (Sam) stated that she did not see a group of cyclists and there was another vehicle that hit the victim,” he said in his broad judgment.
Judge Abu Bakar Katar said the 27-year-old clerk’s unsworn statement from the dock after the court told her to enter her defence was a bare denial and an afterthought.
“The respondent (Sam) stated that she did not see a group of cyclists and there was another vehicle that hit the victim,” he said in his broad judgment.
“This version was not raised at the prosecution stage.”
Abu Bakar said the magistrate was in error for considering that Sam’s defence had created a doubt in the prosecution’s case.
He said it was the prosecution that had proved its case beyond a reasonable doubt.
He said Sam drove her vehicle in a reckless manner, bearing in mind that the road was winding and slightly steep. (Could anyone drive his/her car at high speed when the road was winding and slightly steep? The judge's reasoning is not logical.)
“The magistrate was wrong to accept her defence that she did not know that there were cyclists at the place during the wee hours and it gave her the latitude to drive recklessly,” he said. (Another illogical reasoning by the judge. How could the accident occur if she knew before hand there was a group of cyclists in front?}
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