PETALING JAYA: A 17-year-old girl from Kemaman who was charged with murdering her newborn son two years ago has expressed relief after the charge was reduced to infanticide today.
Lawyer Sangeet Kaur Deo said her client pleaded guilty after the charge was read to her today before magistrate Sharifah Amirda Shasha Amir Shariffuddin.
“My client and her family are relieved over the reduced charge. They look forward to giving her a second chance and allowing her to move on.
“I must stress that she was 14 at the time of the incident and was a victim of statutory rape,” the lawyer told FMT.
The new charge was framed under Section 309A of the Penal Code for infanticide, punishable under Section 309B of the same law with up to 20 years’ imprisonment and a fine, upon conviction.
Sangeet also said the teenager was allowed bail pending sentencing, which will take place on May 9.
The Kemaman magistrates’ court also ordered that a behaviour report be prepared for use during sentencing, a practice Sangeet said is common in all cases involving children.
The girl was initially charged with murdering her newborn on February 15, 2022. She was alleged to have committed the offence at a house in Seri Bandi, Kemaman, in Terengganu between 7am and 9am on Feb 8 the same year.
She was denied bail by the magistrates’ court, and filed for a revision of the court order, but the application was dismissed by the High Court on March 8, 2022. The High Court, however, ordered that she be referred for psychiatric evaluation.
The girl then appealed the denial of bail to the Court of Appeal, which allowed her application on May 13, 2022. - FMT
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