Court sets March 8 for bail decision of teenager charged with killing baby

KUALA TERENGGANU - The application by a 15-year-old girl who was charged with killing her newborn baby boy to be released on bail pending the trial of the case, will be decided on March 8.

High Court judge Datuk Hassan Abdul Ghani set the date after hearing arguments from counsel Sangeet Kaur Deo, who represented the teenager, as well as deputy public prosecutors Ahmad Fadhli Mahmud and Nurhanisah S H Sahul Hamid.

The teenager had filed a review application against the decision of the Kemaman magistrate's court on Feb 15, which did not allow her to be released on bail.

She was charged with killing her baby at a house in Seri Bandi here between 7am and 9am on Feb 8 according to Section 302 of the Penal Code, which carries the death penalty, if convicted.

However, offenders under the age of 18 cannot be sentenced to death under Section 97 (2) of the Child Act 2001, and may be commuted to imprisonment for a period as determined by the Yang di-Pertuan Agong, Sultan or Yang Dipertua Negeri, depending on where the offence occurred.

Sangeet, when met by the media said that in today's proceedings, she argued that the physical, mental and emotional state of the teenager - who had just given birth - had undergone drastic changes, and required due attention in addition to her mother's support and guidance.

"The applicant, who was a 14-year-old 11-month-old child at the time of the arrest, was also a victim of sexual exploitation," she said.

Ahmad Fadhli in his submission said the magistrate's court did not err in deciding not to allow bail to the teenager.

He said the application was also irregular and without an affidavit of support from the teenager's mother and there were no special circumstances that justified the court to allow a review of the magistrate's court's decision.

On Feb 18, the Attorney-General's Chambers (AGC) in a statement said that it could still investigate and review the murder charge against the teenager who allegedly stabbed her baby to death, and replace it with another charge.

According to the AGC, this was after taking into account additional developments, including the results of the investigation into the rape case involving the teenager. - BERNAMA