Penal Code - Singapore Statutes Online

Offences affecting life

Culpable homicide

299. Whoever causes death by doing an act with the intention of causing death, or with the intention of causing such bodily injury as is likely to cause death, or with the knowledge that he is likely by such act to cause death, commits the offence of culpable homicide.

Illustrations

(a) A lays sticks and turf over a pit, with the intention of thereby causing death, or with the knowledge that death is likely to be thereby caused. Z, believing the ground to be firm, treads on it, falls in and is killed. A has committed the offence of culpable homicide.

(b) A knows Z to be behind a bush. B does not know it. A, intending to cause, or knowing it to be likely to cause Z’s death, induces B to fire at the bush. B fires and kills Z. Here B may be guilty of no offence; but A has committed the offence of culpable homicide.

Explanation 1.—A person who causes bodily injury to another who is labouring under a disorder, disease or bodily infirmity, and thereby accelerates the death of that other, shall be deemed to have caused his death.

Explanation 2.—Where death is caused by bodily injury, the person who causes such bodily injury shall be deemed to have caused the death, although by resorting to proper remedies and skilful treatment the death might have been prevented.

Explanation 3.—The causing of the death of a child in the mother’s womb is not homicide. But it may amount to culpable homicide to cause the death of a living child, if any part of that child has been brought forth, though the child may not have breathed or been completely born.

[Indian PC 1860, s. 299]

Murder

300. Except in the cases hereinafter excepted culpable homicide is murder —

(a)

if the act by which the death is caused is done with the intention of causing death;

(b)

if it is done with the intention of causing such bodily injury as the offender knows to be likely to cause the death of the person to whom the harm is caused;

(c)

if it is done with the intention of causing bodily injury to any person, and the bodily injury intended to be inflicted is sufficient in the ordinary course of nature to cause death; or

(d)

if the person committing the act knows that it is so imminently dangerous that it must in all probability cause death, or such bodily injury as is likely to cause death, and commits such act without any excuse for incurring the risk of causing death, or such injury as aforesaid.

Illustrations

(a) A shoots Z with the intention of killing him. Z dies in consequence. A commits murder.

(b) A, knowing that Z is labouring under such a disease that a blow is likely to cause his death, strikes him with the intention of causing bodily injury. Z dies in consequence of the blow. A is guilty of murder, although the blow might not have been sufficient in the ordinary course of nature to cause the death of a person in a sound state of health. But if A, not knowing that Z is labouring under any disease, gives him such a blow as would not in the ordinary course of nature kill a person in a sound state of health, here A, although he may intend to cause bodily injury, is not guilty of murder, if he did not intend to cause death, or such bodily injury as in the ordinary course of nature would cause death.

(c) A intentionally gives Z a knife-cut or club-wound sufficient to cause the death of a man in the ordinary course of nature. Z dies in consequence. Here A is guilty of murder, although he may not have intended to cause Z’s death.

(d) A, without any excuse, fires a loaded cannon into a crowd of persons and kills one of them. A is guilty of murder, although he may not have had a premeditated design to kill any particular individual.

[51/2007]

When culpable homicide is not murder

Exception 1.—Culpable homicide is not murder if the offender whilst deprived of the power of self-control by grave and sudden provocation, causes the death of the person who gave the provocation, or causes the death of any other person by mistake or accident.

The above exception is subject to the following provisos:

(a)	that the provocation is not sought or voluntarily provoked by the offender as an excuse for killing or doing harm to any person;

(b)	that the offender did not know and had no reason to believe that the provocation was given by anything done in obedience to the law, or by a public servant in the lawful exercise of the powers of such public servant;

(c)	that the provocation is not given by anything done in the lawful exercise of the right of private defence.

Explanation 1.—Whether the provocation was grave and sudden enough to prevent the offence from amounting to murder is a question of fact, having regard to whether an ordinary person of the same gender and age as the offender, sharing such characteristics as would affect the gravity of the provocation and placed in the same situation as the offender, would be deprived of self-control by the provocation.

Explanation 2.—Grave and sudden provocation may be in the form of words, gestures or conduct or any combination of words, gestures or conduct.

Illustrations

(a) A, under the influence of passion excited by a provocation given by Z, intentionally kills Y, Z’s child. This is murder, inasmuch as the provocation was not given by the child, and the death of the child was not caused by accident or misfortune in doing an act caused by the provocation.

(b) Y gives grave and sudden provocation to A. A, on this provocation, fires a pistol at Y, neither intending nor knowing himself to be likely to kill Z, who is near him, but out of sight. A kills Z. Here A has not committed murder but merely culpable homicide.

(c) A is lawfully arrested by Z, a police officer. A is excited to sudden and violent passion by the arrest, and kills Z. This is murder, inasmuch as the provocation was given by a thing done by a public servant in the exercise of his powers.

(d) A appears as a witness before Z, a Magistrate. Z says that he does not believe a word of A’s deposition, and that A has perjured himself. A is moved to sudden passion by these words, and kills Z. This is murder.

(e) A attempts to pull Z’s nose. Z, in the exercise of the right of private defence, lays hold of A to prevent him from doing so. A is moved to sudden and violent passion in consequence, and kills Z. This is murder, inasmuch as the provocation was given by a thing done in the exercise of the right of private defence.

(f) Z strikes B. B is by this provocation excited to violent rage. A, a bystander, intending to take advantage of B’s rage, and to cause him to kill Z, puts a knife into B’s hand for that purpose. B kills Z with the knife. Here B may have committed only culpable homicide, but A is guilty of murder.

(g) A and Z are married to each other. A loses self-control on Z’s provocation and intentionally kills Z soon after the provocation was given. Although the provocation, when viewed in isolation, would not amount to grave and sudden provocation, it was the last of a series of prolonged physical and mental abuse of A by Z. An ordinary person in A’s position would have lost self-control and have done what A did. A has committed only culpable homicide and not murder.

[51/2007]

Exception 2.—Culpable homicide is not murder if the offender, in the exercise of the right of private defence of person or property, exceeds the power given to him by law, and causes the death of the person against whom he is exercising such right of defence, without premeditation and without any intention of doing more harm than is necessary for the purpose of such defence.

Explanation.—The word “premeditation” means the offender’s intention, which was formed prior to the circumstances which gave rise to the act of private defence —

(a)	to cause death in section 300(a) or to cause such bodily injury as is mentioned in section 300(b) or (c); or

(b)	to do an act knowing that the act is so imminently dangerous in the way mentioned in section 300(d).

Illustration

[Deleted by Act 51 of 2007]

Exception 3.—Culpable homicide is not murder if the offender, being a public servant, or aiding a public servant acting for the advancement of public justice, exceeds the powers given to him by law, and causes death by doing an act which he, in good faith, believes to be lawful and necessary for the due discharge of his duty as such public servant, and without ill-will towards the person whose death is caused.

Exception 4.—Culpable homicide is not murder if it is committed without premeditation in a sudden fight in the heat of passion upon a sudden quarrel, and without the offender having taken undue advantage or acted in a cruel or unusual manner.

The above exception is subject to the proviso that the offender did not know and had no reason to believe that the person whose death was caused was acting in obedience to the law, or was a public servant acting in the lawful exercise of the powers of such public servant.

Explanation 1.—It is immaterial in such cases which party offers the provocation or commits the first assault.

Explanation 2.—The word “fight” includes the exchange of blows even if the blows do not land on their target and includes a single blow or punch.

Explanation 3.—The word “premeditation” means the offender’s intention, which was formed prior to the circumstances constituting the sudden fight —

(a)	to cause death in section 300(a) or to cause such bodily injury as is mentioned in section 300(b) or (c); or

(b)	to do an act knowing that the act is so imminently dangerous in the way mentioned in section 300(d).

Explanation 4.—A “quarrel” does not require a verbal exchange of words.

Illustrations

(a) A and Z, who are rival gang members, are in a coffee shop seated at different tables. They mutually stare at each other fiercely without exchanging any words. Z disengages from A by turning away and starts to leave the coffee shop. A sees a cutlery knife on his table which A had earlier used for A’s meal. A picks up the cutlery knife and stabs Z’s throat in the heat of passion. Z falls and dies almost immediately. Although there was a “sudden quarrel” without any exchange of words, Exception 4 does not apply because there was no “fight”, there being no exchange of blows or assault between A and Z.

(b) A had a consensual sexual relationship with Z until Z terminated the relationship. A came to Z’s house and asked Z if Z would have sex with A. Z refused. A became angry and said A would use force, if necessary. A grappled with Z who resisted A’s advances and struck A’s face. Enraged by Z’s resistance, A slams Z into a wall, and Z slumps to the ground. While Z is motionless on the ground, A kicks Z’s head repeatedly and kills Z. Exception 4 does not apply because A had taken undue advantage of Z while Z was lying motionless on the ground.

Exception 5.—Culpable homicide is not murder when the person whose death is caused, being above the age of 18 years, suffers death or takes the risk of death with his own consent.

Illustration

A and Z, both being persons above 18 years of age, decide to commit suicide together by drinking poison. With Z’s consent, A pours a lethal poison down Z’s throat but after watching Z die, A cannot summon the courage to drink the same poison. A has committed culpable homicide and not murder.

Exception 6.—Culpable homicide is not murder if the offender being a woman voluntarily causes the death of her child being a child under the age of 12 months, and at the time of the offence the balance of her mind was disturbed by reason of her not having fully recovered from the effect of giving birth to the child or by reason of the effect of lactation consequent upon the birth of the child.

Exception 7.—Culpable homicide is not murder if at the time of the acts or omissions causing the death concerned, the offender was suffering from such abnormality of mind (whether arising from a condition of arrested or retarded development or any inherent causes or induced by disease or injury) as substantially —

(a)	impaired the offender’s capacity —

(i)	to know the nature of the acts or omissions in causing the death or in being a party to causing the death; or

(ii)	to know whether such acts or omissions are wrong (whether wrong by the ordinary standards of reasonable and honest persons or wrong as contrary to law); or

(b)	impaired the offender’s power to control his acts or omissions in causing the death or being a party to causing the death.

[Act 15 of 2019 wef 01/01/2020]

[Indian PC 1860, s. 300]

Culpable homicide by causing the death of a person other than the person whose death was intended

301.—(1) If a person, by doing anything which he intends or knows to be likely to cause death, commits culpable homicide by causing the death of any person whose death he neither intends nor knows himself to be likely to cause, the culpable homicide committed by the offender is of the description of which it would have been if he had caused the death of the person whose death he intended or knew himself to be likely to cause.

[Act 15 of 2019 wef 01/01/2020]

(2) To avoid doubt, in the circumstances mentioned in subsection (1), the accused person may rely on any defence or exception in law as though the accused person had caused the death of the person whose death he intended or knew himself to be likely to cause.

[Act 15 of 2019 wef 01/01/2020]

[Indian PC 1860, s. 301]

Punishment for murder

302.—(1) Whoever commits murder within the meaning of section 300(a) shall be punished with death.

(2) Whoever commits murder within the meaning of section 300(b), (c) or (d) shall be punished with death or imprisonment for life and shall, if he is not punished with death, also be liable to caning.

[Act 32 of 2012 wef 01/01/2013]

Punishment for culpable homicide not amounting to murder

^*304. Whoever commits culpable homicide not amounting to murder shall —

(a)

if the act by which death is caused is done with the intention of causing death, or of causing such bodily injury as is likely to cause death, be punished with —

(i)	imprisonment for life, and shall also be liable to caning; or
(ii)	imprisonment for a term which may extend to 20 years, and shall also be liable to fine or to caning; or

(b)

if the act is done with the knowledge that it is likely to cause death, but without any intention to cause death, or to cause such bodily injury as is likely to cause death, be punished with imprisonment for a term which may extend to 15 years, or with fine, or with caning, or with any combination of such punishments.

[Act 32 of 2012 wef 01/01/2013]

[Act 15 of 2019 wef 01/01/2020]

^*There is no section 303.

Causing death by rash or negligent act

304A. Whoever causes the death of any person by doing any rash or negligent act not amounting to culpable homicide, shall be punished —

(a)	in the case of a rash act, with imprisonment for a term which may extend to 5 years, or with fine, or with both; or
(b)	in the case of a negligent act, with imprisonment for a term which may extend to 2 years, or with fine, or with both. [51/2007]

[Indian PC 1860, s. 304A]

Causing death of child below 14 years of age, domestic worker or vulnerable person by sustained abuse

304B.—(1) A relevant person who causes the death of any child, domestic worker or vulnerable person by sustained abuse shall be punished with imprisonment for a term which may extend to 20 years, and shall also be liable to fine or to caning.

(2) In this section —

“child” means a person below 14 years of age;

“domestic worker”, “employer”, “employment agent” and “member of the employer’s household” have the meanings given by section 73(4);

“neglect” means the failure by a relevant person to provide any or adequate essential care (such as but not limited to food, clothing, medical aid, lodging and other necessities of life) to the extent of causing personal injury or physical pain to, or injury to the physical health of any child, domestic worker or vulnerable person;

“relevant person” means —

(a)	in the case of a child, a person who has custody, charge or care of the child;
(b)	in the case of a domestic worker, the employer of the domestic worker, a member of the employer’s household or the employment agent of the domestic worker; and
(c)	in the case of a vulnerable person, a person who has custody, charge or care of the vulnerable person;

“sustained abuse” means a course of conduct which consists of voluntarily causing hurt or knowingly causing neglect, or both, of a child, domestic worker or vulnerable person on —

(a)	2 or more occasions; or
(b)	a single occasion if the conduct is protracted;

“vulnerable person” has the meaning given by section 74A(5).

[Act 15 of 2019 wef 01/01/2020]

Causing or allowing death of child below 14 years of age, domestic worker or vulnerable person in same household

304C.—(1) A person (A) shall be guilty of an offence if —

(a)

a person below 14 years of age, a domestic worker or a vulnerable person (B) dies as a result of the unlawful act of a person who —

(i)	was a member of the same household as B; and
(ii)	had frequent contact with B;

(b)

A was a member of the same household as B, and had frequent contact with B at the time of that act;

(c)

at that time there was a significant risk of grievous hurt being caused to B by the unlawful act of such a person; and

(d)

either A was the person whose act caused B’s death or —

(i)	A was, or ought to have been, aware of the significant risk mentioned in paragraph (c);
(ii)	A failed to take such steps as A could reasonably have been expected to take to protect B from the significant risk; and
(iii)	the unlawful act occurred in circumstances of the kind that A foresaw or ought to have foreseen.

(2) The prosecution does not have to prove whether it is the first alternative element in subsection (1)(d) or the second alternative element (sub-paragraphs (i), (ii) and (iii) of subsection (1)(d)) that applies.

(3) A is not guilty of an offence under this section if A could not have been expected in A’s circumstances to take any such step as is mentioned in subsection (1)(d)(ii).

(4) Any person who is guilty of an offence under this section shall be punished with imprisonment for a term which may extend to 20 years, and shall also be liable to fine or to caning.

(5) For the purposes of this section —

(a)

a person is to be regarded as a “member” of a particular household, even if that person does not live in that household, if that person visits it so often and for such periods of time that it is reasonable to regard him as a member of the particular household;

(b)

where B lived in different households at different times, “the same household as B” refers to the household in which B was living at the time of the act that caused B’s death;

(c)

an “unlawful” act, other than an act by A, is one that constitutes an offence or would constitute an offence but for being the act of —

(i)	a person below the age specified in section 82;
(ii)	a person of the age specified in section 83 who had not attained sufficient maturity of understanding to judge of the nature and consequence of the act;
(iii)	a person entitled to rely on a defence of unsoundness of mind;
(iv)	a person entitled to rely on a defence of intoxication; or
(v)	a person entitled to rely on a defence of mistake of fact;

(d)

“domestic worker” and “vulnerable person” have the meanings given by sections 73(4) and 74A(5), respectively; and

(e)

the circumstances mentioned in subsection (3) include but is not limited to A’s past or present experiences of suffering neglect, hurt, grievous hurt, sexual abuse or any injury to A’s mental health as a result of an unlawful act by any member of the same household as A.

[Act 15 of 2019 wef 01/01/2020]

Abetment of suicide or attempted suicide of minor or person who lacks mental capacity

305.—(1) If any minor or other person who lacks capacity —

(a)	commits suicide, whoever abets the commission of the suicide and who knew or ought reasonably to have known that the person who committed suicide was a minor or a person who lacks capacity, shall be punished with death or imprisonment for life, or with imprisonment for a term which may extend to 20 years, and shall, if he is not sentenced to death or imprisonment for life, also be liable to fine;
(b)	attempts suicide, whoever abets the attempted suicide and who knew or ought reasonably to have known that the person who attempted suicide was a minor or a person who lacks capacity, shall be punished with imprisonment for a term which may extend to 15 years, and shall also be liable to fine; or
(c)	attempts suicide and hurt is caused to any person in the course of the attempted suicide, whoever abets the attempted suicide and who knew or ought reasonably to have known that the person who attempted suicide was a minor or a person who lacks capacity, shall be punished with imprisonment for life or with imprisonment for a term which may extend to 20 years, and shall, if he is not sentenced to imprisonment for life, also be liable to fine.

(2) In subsection (1) —

“minor” means a person below 18 years of age;

“person who lacks capacity” means a person who lacks capacity to understand the consequences of attempting or committing suicide, as the case may be, from unsoundness of mind, mental incapacity, intoxication, or the influence of any drug or other substance.

[Act 15 of 2019 wef 01/01/2020]

Abetment of suicide or attempted suicide

306. If any person attempts or commits suicide, whoever abets the commission of such attempted suicide or suicide shall be punished with imprisonment for a term which may extend to 10 years, and shall also be liable to fine.

[Indian PC 1860, s. 306]

[Act 15 of 2019 wef 01/01/2020]

Attempt to murder

307.—(1) Whoever does any act with the intention of causing death and under such circumstances that if he by that act caused death he would be guilty of murder, shall be punished with imprisonment for a term which may extend to 15 years, and shall also be liable to fine; and if hurt is caused to any person by such act, the offender shall be punished with —

(a)

imprisonment for life and shall also be liable to caning; or

(b)

imprisonment for a term which may extend to 20 years, and shall also be liable to fine, or to caning or to both.

[62/73; 51/2007]

Illustrations

(a) A shoots at Z with intention to kill him, under such circumstances that, if death ensued, A would be guilty of murder. A is liable to punishment under this section.

(b) A, with intention of causing the death of a child of tender years, throws the child into a river. A has committed the offence defined by this section, although the death of the child does not ensue.

(c) A, intending to murder Z, buys a gun and loads it. A has not yet committed the offence. A fires the gun at Z. He has committed the offence defined in this section; and if by such firing he wounds Z, he is liable to the punishment provided by the latter part of this section.

(d) A, intending to murder Z by poison, purchases poison and mixes the same with food which remains in A’s keeping; A has not yet committed the offence defined in this section. A places the food on Z’s table or delivers it to Z’s servants to place it on Z’s table. A has committed the offence defined in this section.

[51/2007]

[Act 15 of 2019 wef 01/01/2020]

Other offences by convicts

(2) When any person offending under this section is under sentence of imprisonment for life, he may, if hurt is caused, be punished with death.

[Indian PC 1860, s. 307]

Attempt to commit culpable homicide

308. Whoever does any act with the intention to cause death and under such circumstances that if he by that act caused death he would be guilty of culpable homicide not amounting to murder, shall be punished with imprisonment for a term which may extend to 7 years, or with fine, or with both; and if hurt is caused to any person by such act, the offender shall be punished with imprisonment for a term which may extend to 15 years, or with fine, or with caning, or with any combination of such punishments.

[51/2007]

Illustration

A, on grave and sudden provocation, fires a pistol at Z intending to kill Z, under such circumstances that if he thereby caused death he would be guilty of culpable homicide not amounting to murder. A has committed the offence defined in this section.

[Indian PC 1860, s. 308]

[Act 15 of 2019 wef 01/01/2020]

Causing death in furtherance of group’s object

308A.—(1) Any person shall be guilty of an offence who is or acts as a member of a group —

(a)

knowing that the common object of the members of the group is to commit an offence under this Code or any written law;

(b)

knowing that —

(i)	death or grievous hurt is likely to be caused in furtherance of the group’s common object; or
(ii)	a deadly weapon, or anything which, used as a weapon of offence, is likely to cause death, is to be used in any manner against another person in the furtherance of that common object; and

(c)

the death of a person was caused in furtherance of the group’s common object.

Illustration

Three members of a group including A decide to rob a neighbourhood shop. The group leader, B brings a sharp knife but B reassures A that the knife is only to be used to threaten the shopkeeper, C, and not to harm C. A believes B and takes part in the robbery. C however refuses to surrender his cash to the group. B then stabs C with the knife and C dies from his stab wounds. A is guilty of an offence under this section because A knew that the knife was to be used to threaten another person, C, in furtherance of the group’s common object to commit robbery.

(2) A person who is guilty of an offence under subsection (1) shall be punished with imprisonment for life or imprisonment for a term which may extend to 20 years, and shall also be liable to caning.

(3) In subsection (1), “group” has the meaning given by section 2(1) of the Organised Crime Act 2015 (Act 26 of 2015).

[Act 15 of 2019 wef 01/01/2020]

Concealment, desecration or disposal of corpse that impedes discovery, identification, criminal investigations or prosecutions

308B.—(1) A person shall be guilty of an offence who intentionally or knowingly conceals, desecrates or disposes of a human corpse and by such act impedes or prevents —

(a)	the discovery or identification of a human corpse; or
(b)	the detection, investigation or prosecution of an offence under this Code or any other written law.

(2) A person who is guilty of an offence under subsection (1) shall be punished with imprisonment for a term which may extend to 7 years.

(3) In this section, “desecrate”, in relation to a human corpse, includes any act committed after the death of a living person including but not limited to dismemberment, disfigurement, mutilation, burning, or any act committed to cause the human corpse in whole or in part to be devoured, scattered or dissipated.

[Act 15 of 2019 wef 01/01/2020]

309. [Repealed by Act 15 of 2019 wef 01/01/2020]

Infanticide

310. When any woman by any intentional act or omission causes the death of her child being a child under the age of 12 months, but at the time of the act or omission the balance of her mind was disturbed by reason of her not having fully recovered from the effect of giving birth to the child or by reason of the effect of lactation consequent upon the birth of the child, she shall, notwithstanding that the circumstances were such that but for this section the offence would have amounted to murder, be guilty of the offence of infanticide.

[Act 15 of 2019 wef 01/01/2020]

Punishment for infanticide

311. Whoever commits the offence of infanticide shall be punished at the discretion of the court with imprisonment for life, or with imprisonment for a term which may extend to 10 years, and shall, if he is not sentenced to imprisonment for life, also be liable to fine.

[Act 15 of 2019 wef 01/01/2020]

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