Protection of criminal law on minors from strict liability on Singapore

According to Xinhua news agency, a Singaporean32Year old primary school female teachers having sex with an underage boys school, on2009Years2Month23The day was sentenced to10Months in prison. According to the Singapore news reports of female teachers, who is married with2A child. She and the boys met in2007Years6Month, helped the latter lessons. The boys last year in junior middle school,2People still keep contact, from last year3Month sexual relationship. Because the boys at the age of15Years old, is a minor, the female teacher therefore has offended the Singapore law.The judge said in the judgment, as teachers, parents and students the defendant failed to live up to social trust in her. She and the age of the victim caused by the gap, should know the consequences of their behavior. The judge emphasized, must send a clear message to the public, both men and women, as a responsible for the supervision of others' children adult abuse people's trust, must be severely punished. The female teachers in Singapore last year amended criminal code, give the minors more protection, the first convicted women.

In accordance with the laws of Singapore, if sexual relations with a minor, which constitute a crime, regardless of whether knew its age, regardless of whether minors in the voluntary. This is the strict responsibility of criminal law. Strict liability is essentially a kind of imputation principle, the main responsibility is not on the imputation principle under the assumed by a legal challenge consequences and state. The modern meaning of strict liability in criminal law of Anglo American law system, it as a penal system unique to the Anglo American law system, continental law system in general do not recognize the strict responsibility.
   Strict liability, also called absolute liability, liability without fault, it refers to a legal permit shall be investigated for criminal responsibility for some lack of intention to commit a crime behavior. Strict liability is not a requirement for the existence of fault liability forms, in theory, also known as absolute liability or no fault liability. Strict liability does not require subjective fault, but also not have no fault, as long as the act in fact caused harmful consequences, no matter what is the subjective mental state, behavior person to the criminal responsibility. Strict liability is called"Strict"Caution, because it is the behavior of people require more rigorous and demanding, it is generally the exception to the fault liability. Principle of strict liability, the prosecutor without proof that the perpetrator is sin content, the content, but that does not mean people really have no fault. To establish the principle of strict liability, is"Fair"And"Efficiency"The balance of value, game two method results.

The existence of strict liability in criminal law of our country, the academic circles have affirmed that two kinds of viewpoints and deny. Definitely say that, there are strict liability in the criminal law of Chinese, mainly manifests in the following several cases, one is the nature and unable to control their behavior drunk behavior completely unable to recognize his own conduct, but ruled out pathological drunkenness, and shall be still for their criminal liabilities; two is in the rape the crime of carnal knowledge of a child behavior and given a statutory crime, behavior in some cases did not know each other is a young girl or that the person is not a young girl and had sex with, and subject to criminal responsibility; three is the behavior of misunderstanding in law, the law on a certain act provides for the crime, and behavior people do not know the law is mistakenly believe that is not a crime, such as the excessive defense shall be investigated for criminal responsibility is the act of innocence and let it bear criminal responsibility; four is a huge amount of property crime of possession crime behavior in an unknown source, not in holding the state must have the crime shape, the prosecution as long as can be proved to hold up state for the perpetrator of criminal responsibility; five is the crime of losing firearms without report, behavior person lost guns without reporting is intentionally, but the harmful consequences caused mentality Energy is the fault may be allowed; in addition the strict liability in the environmental crimes, carrying weapons snatch and transformed robbery, illegal lease, guns and other crimes.

 The establishment of the crime of rape (fornication with an underage girl) and given a statutory crime, reflects the protection of minors legislation. The crime of rape and prostitution young girl crime of carnal knowledge of a child behavior whether strict liability, the key to see whether the behavior constitutes a crime to knowing each other14The young girl as elements, if required"Knowingly"Application is the exclusion of strict liability. China's criminal law does not expressly"Knowingly"But there are no provisions, does not mean that the structure does not need conviction"Knowingly"As the elements of crime, from the relevant judicial interpretation and judicial practice are act"Knowingly"The. Especially2003Years1Month23Day, the Supreme People's Court issued the "about people not knowing is under the age of fourteen young girls, whether a reply" rape of the sex was consensual, and on"Knowingly"Specifically described, the judicial interpretation of the content is:
   "The person who knowingly is under the age of fourteen young girls and their sexual relationship, whether the young girl is voluntary, shall be in accordance with the provisions of the criminal law in the second paragraph 236th, in order to rape conviction and punishment; behavior person did not know each other is under the age of fourteen young girls, the sex was consensual, causing no serious consequences, if the circumstances are obviously minor the, was not deemed a crime."
    The judicial interpretation, then in the academic circles caused huge controversy. The famous jurist professor Su Li Dean of the Law School of Peking University, wrote on the judicial interpretation, aroused a great disturbance, especially the field of criminal law. Su Li thinks, this explanation is denied that strict liability, resulting in society and the law on the protection of minors is ineffective, because the suspect is very easy to prove himself "not knowing", and many are "no serious consequences". But, in any case, having sex with a minor, the minor injury can not be avoided. With this judicial interpretation, it opens a sexual relations with a minor and escape the criminal responsibility of the door. From the judicial interpretation can be seen, China's criminal law for the protection of minors, not so strict Anglo American criminal law.