life imprisonment - what its definition ?
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I understand that life imprisonment means probability of being released after 25 - 30 yrs in jail. Some years back, this was amended to define life imprisonment as literally life imprisonment - i.e. no chance of ever getting released - i.e imprisoned till death ~ is that true ?
If so, its gruesome. Can the convicted then request for death penalty instead of life life imprisonment ? Wouldn't it better to just die than to rot in prison without hope of release this life time... -
not true.Originally posted by red_amoeba:I understand that life imprisonment means probability of being released after 25 - 30 yrs in jail. Some years back, this was amended to define life imprisonment as literally life imprisonment - i.e. no chance of ever getting released - i.e imprisoned till death ~ is that true ?
If so, its gruesome. Can the convicted then request for death penalty instead of life life imprisonment ? Wouldn't it better to just die than to rot in prison without hope of release this life time...
i am sure most people will choose life imprisonment over death anytime.
nobody wants to die!!! -
its true if there is hope of release after certain period of time, say 20 - 30 yrs for good behaviour, etc.
But what if the sentence is such that its life (i.e. no hope of getting released?) then what is the point of being locked up for rest of life ? No aim, no nothing
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it depends.Originally posted by red_amoeba:its true if there is hope of release after certain period of time, say 20 - 30 yrs for good behaviour, etc.
But what if the sentence is such that its life (i.e. no hope of getting released?) then what is the point of being locked up for rest of life ? No aim, no nothing
i mean you heard of pple reading bboks, playing games and having friends in the prison right?
it may be bad but as with life, it may not be all bad -
We are already imprisoned by Life itself.
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There always hope of being released.. but after so long maybe there a mental block of being intergrated in a new society with different mindset and new technologies.. different from the world they surrendered.
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the post is inspired from the following case :
25 year old Abdul Nasir faced the death penalty not once, but twice, for different charges. Both times he managed to escape the gallows. But because of this case, the Court of Appeal ruled that in future, all life-imprisonment terms will mean a person will be jailed for the duration of his natural life. Before this, a life-imprisonment term was interpreted as a 20 year jail sentence.
Japanese tourists, Isae Fujii, 49 and Miyoko Takishita, 55 had just arrived at the Oriental Hotel. They had expected to enjoy themselves in Singapore which was known for a low crime rate.
After they collected their keys, they went up to their room on the 9th floor. Little would they expect 2 men to rush in after them. Each man attacked one woman. The tourists were smaller in size and were not in any position to resist. The robbers grabbed their money and valuables and ran off.
Mdm Isae Fujii, 25, suffered serious facial injuries and died. Forensic pathologists said that Fujii suffered suffocation when pieces of bone were choked in her throat. They said she must have been stamped in the face. Her roommate survived with minor injuries because she feigned unconscious during the attack. Less than an hour after touching down, Miss Fujii lost her life in Singapore.
Abdul Nasir was the person accused of causing FujiiÂ’s death while Abdul Rahman was the one who attacked her room-mate. They were unemployed and had gone to the Oriental to look for jobs. When they chanced upon the Japanese tourists in the lobby, they hatched a plan to rob them. Nasir said he hit FujiiÂ’s nose and she fell, after which he slipped and stepped on her face accidentally.
Nasir was eventually acquitted of murder but was found guilty of committing robbery with hurt and was sentenced to 18 yearsÂ’ imprisonment and 18 strokes of the cane. The court found that it was probable for Nasir, at a height of 1.8m and weight of 76kg, to have caused IsaeÂ’s death with an accidental fall.
Even in remand, Abdul managed to commit another offence to face a possible death penalty again. Together with another cellmate, Low Theng Gee, 30, he overpowered 2 prison officers and held them hostage to make demands for a car, two guns and eight bullets. Their attempted escape was foiled when the Special Tactics and Rescue Team stormed the lock-up and freed the hostages.
Nasir was sentenced to life imprisonment and 12 strokes of the cane for the charge of kidnapping two police officers. The sentence would begin after his 18-year jail term. This meant another 20 years on top of the previous 18 years sentence.
He appealed the sentence and the consequence is a significant change in SingaporeÂ’s legal system. Following that two prosecutors made submissions before the Court of Appeal suggesting that a sentence of life imprisonment must mean imprisonment for the rest of a convicted personÂ’s natural life. A month later, in a Landmark Ruling, the Court of Appeal declared that this should be so.
[However, the life term for Nasir would still be 20 years because the new ruling was made after he was convictedÂ…]