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Criminal Procedure Code (Amendment) Bill

Bill No. 7/1970

Read the first time on 9th March 1970.

An Act to amend the Criminal Procedure Code (Reprint No. 1 of 1969).

Be it enacted by the President with the advice and consent of the Parliament of Singapore, as follows: —

Short title

1. This Act may be cited as the Criminal Procedure Code (Amendment) Act, 1970.

Amendment of section 263

2. Sub-paragraph (iv) of paragraph (g) of section 263 of the Criminal Procedure Code (hereinafter in this Act referred to as “the Code”) is hereby amended —

(a)	by deleting the word “inquest” appearing in the second line thereof and substituting therefor the word “inquiry”;
(b)	by deleting the words “the jury” appearing in the third line thereof; and
(c)	by deleting the word “themselves” appearing in the fourth line thereof and substituting therefor the word “himself”.

Repeal and re-enactment of section 285

3. Section 285 of the Code is hereby repealed and the following substituted therefor: —

“Appeal to Judicial Committee

285. Nothing herein may or can take away or abridge the undoubted right and authority of the Judicial Committee of Her Britannic Majesty’s Privy Council (hereinafter referred to as the “Judicial Committee”) to admit or receive any appeal from any judgment, decree, sentence or order of any Appellate Court (within the meaning of section 2 of the Judicial Committee Act, 1966 (Act 37 of 1966)) in any criminal matter made by or on behalf of the Public Prosecutor or any person aggrieved thereby, subject to the provisions of section 3 of that Act.”.

Amendment of section 286

4. Section 286 of the Code is hereby amended by deleting the word “President” appearing in the third and in the fourth lines thereof and substituting therefor in each case the words “Judicial Committee”.

Amendment of heading to Chapter XXX

5. The Code is hereby amended by deleting the words “INQUESTS AND” appearing in the heading to Chapter XXX.

Amendment of section 314

6. Section 314 of the Code is hereby amended by deleting the definitions of “inquest” and “inquiry” appearing therein and substituting therefor the following: —

“ “inquiry” means an investigation as to the cause of any death held by a Coroner;”.

Amendment of section 318

7. Subsection (2) of section 318 of the Code is hereby deleted and the following substituted therefor: —

“(2) The authorisation for burial under this section may be given by a Coroner at any time after he has viewed the body.”.

Amendment of section 319

8. Section 319 of the Code is hereby amended —

(a)	by deleting the words “Inquests and” appearing in the cross-heading above section 319 thereof;
(b)	by deleting the expression “inquest or an inquiry, as he thinks fit, except in the cases where he is required under this Code to hold an inquest and in such last-mentioned cases he shall hold an inquest” appearing in the fifth, sixth, seventh and eighth lines thereof and substituting therefor the word “inquiry”; and
(c)	by deleting the words “inquest or” appearing in the marginal note thereto.

Repeal and re-enactment of section 320

9. Section 320 of the Code is hereby repealed and the following substituted therefor: —

“Inquiry in case of person dying in institution or suffering capital punishment

320. An inquiry shall be held in every case of the death of a person detained in an institution or of a person who suffers capital punishment.”.

Repeal and re-enactment of section 321

10. Section 321 of the Code is hereby repealed and the following substituted therefor: —

“Power of Public Prosecutor to require inquiry to be held

321.—(1) Where the dead body of any person has been found, the Public Prosecutor may require any Coroner to hold an inquiry into the cause of, and the circumstances connected with, the death of that person, and every Coroner so required may and shall hold such inquiry.

(2) The Public Prosecutor may also direct whether the body shall or shall not be exhumed and the Coroner shall comply with such direction.”.

Amendment of section 322

11. Section 322 of the Code is hereby amended —

(a)	by deleting the words “inquest or” wherever they appear therein;
(b)	by deleting the words “inquests and” appearing in the eleventh line thereof;
(c)	by deleting the word “inquest” appearing in the penultimate line thereof and substituting therefor the word “inquiry”; and
(d)	by deleting the words “Inquest or inquiry” appearing in the marginal note thereto and substituting therefor the word “Inquiry”.

Amendment of section 323

12. Section 323 of the Code is hereby amended —

(a)	by deleting the expression “and in the case of an inquest may, if he thinks fit, discharge the jury” appearing in the eighth and ninth lines of subsection (1) thereof; and
(b)	by deleting the colon appearing in the fourth line of subsection (3) thereof and substituting therefor a full-stop, and by deleting the proviso thereto.

Amendment of section 324

13. Section 324 of the Code is hereby amended —

(a)	by deleting the words “inquest or” wherever they appear therein; and
(b)	by deleting the words “verdict or” appearing in the second line of subsection (2) thereof.

Amendment of heading above section 327

14. The Code is hereby amended by deleting the words “Inquests and” appearing in the heading above section 327 thereof.

Repeal of sections 327, 328 and 329

15. Sections 327, 328 and 329 of the Code are hereby repealed.

Amendment of section 330

16. Section 330 of the Code is hereby amended —

(a)	by deleting the words “The jurors at every inquest and the Coroner at every inquiry” appearing in the first and second lines thereof and substituting therefor the expression “At every inquiry, the Coroner”; and
(b)	by deleting the words “jurors and” appearing in the marginal note thereto.

Repeal and re-enactment of section 337

17. Section 337 of the Code is hereby repealed and the following substituted therefor: —

“Recording of finding of Coroner

337. After the whole of the evidence is closed and the statement or evidence of the accused person, if any, taken down, the Coroner shall record in writing his finding on the evidence.”.

Repeal of section 338

18. Section 338 of the Code is hereby repealed.

Repeal of section 348

19. Section 348 of the Code is hereby repealed.

Amendment of section 350

20. Section 350 of the Code is hereby amended —

(a)	by deleting the expression “inquest or inquiry, at which a verdict or” appearing in the first line thereof and substituting therefor the expression “inquiry, at which a”; and
(b)	by deleting the words “Inquest or inquiry” appearing in the marginal note thereto and substituting therefor the word “Inquiry”.

Amendment of section 351

21. Section 351 of the Code is hereby amended —

(a)	by deleting the words “verdict or” appearing in the first and second lines thereof; and
(b)	by deleting the words “inquest or” appearing in the fifth and in the seventh lines thereof.

Amendment of section 352

22. Subsection (2) of section 352 of the Code is hereby amended by deleting the words “or jury” appearing in the second line thereof.

Amendment of section 354

23. Subsection (1) of section 354 of the Code is hereby amended —

(a)	by deleting the words “inquest or” appearing in the first line thereof; and
(b)	by deleting the words “verdict or” appearing in the last line thereof.

Amendment of Schedule B

24. Schedule B to the Code is hereby amended —

(a)	by deleting the expression “inquest [or inquiry]” appearing in the third line of Form 51 thereof and substituting therefor the word “inquiry”;
(b)	by deleting the expression “inquest [or inquiry]” appearing in the third line of Form 52 thereof and substituting therefor the word “inquiry”; and
(c)	by deleting the words “or Verdict” appearing in the fifteenth line of Form 52 thereof.

Miscellaneous amendments

25. The following provisions of the Code are hereby amended by deleting the words “inquest or”, “inquest or an” and “inquests and” wherever they appear therein: —

Sections 317(3), 317(5), 318(1) and marginal note, 323 and marginal note, 326(2), 331(1), 332(2), 335, 339(1), 340, 341, 342 and marginal note, 343 and marginal note, 344 and marginal note, 345, 346, 347 and 353.