The Ministry of Law and Ministry of Home Affairs in Singapore have introduced the Criminal Procedure (Miscellaneous Amendments) Bill 2024 to Parliament. The bill includes two key measures: instituting new regulations for forensic medical examinations (FME) and allowing for indefinite detention of serious sexual offenders.
Forensic medical examinations are defined in the bill as physical evaluations, including collection of body samples, photography, making casts and impressions of body parts, which may involve intimate areas. These examinations will exclusively be conducted by healthcare professionals and used predominantly in sexual assault cases. In this context, the ministry had indicated two previous incidents, in which such assessments were instrumental in identifying individuals accused of rape and paedophilia.
FME regulations will regulate collections from both accused persons and possible victims. The proposed law will permit police to order accused people to undergo FME, particularly if it is relevant to an ongoing investigation or if an offense is reasonably suspected. Refusal to comply with the examination by an accused person will be met with penalties – fines and up to seven years of incarceration. Further, if the accused lacks a ‘reasonable excuse’ for non-compliance, a court could form negative opinions about them during criminal proceedings. Force may be applied to obtain an FME, albeit with certain limits, especially when intimate areas or invasive procedures like buccal swabs are involved.
On the other hand, consent will be required to perform an FME on an alleged victim, with exceptions based on age, physical and mental state, and whether delay might impede the outcome of the FME. The age of consent for an FME is set at 16, with various stipulations for minors and situations when someone is not capable of giving consent due to their condition.
In addition to changes to the FME procedure, the bill also introduces proposals to revise sentencing. Particularly, it advocates for the abolition of Corrective Training sentences and amendments to the Preventive Detention sentencing system. The bill also introduces a new scheme, Sentence for Enhanced Public Protection (SEPP), intended for severe sexual offences and involving stricter rules and longer terms.
These changes follow international criticisms, triggered in August by UN Human Rights experts who called upon Singapore to cease its ‘cruel and inhumane punishment’ of those convicted for drug trafficking.
Following its presentation in Parliament, the proposed bill will undergo two more readings, where it typically undergoes debates and amendments. Upon successful completion of these stages, the bill will be forwarded to the president for assent.