SINGAPORE - A High Court judge has reiterated that the prosecution has a duty to disclose witness statements to the defence, even when there is doubt about the relevance or impact of the material.
The judge made the comments in a judgment, released on Thursday , on why he allowed a motion by businessman Lim Hong Liang to place a witness statement before the court in his appeal. Prosecutors resisted producing Edwin's statement, arguing that it was likely to implicate Lim and would not lead to a real line of inquiry for the defence.
In March this year, before Justice Aedit gave his decision, the Court of Appeal issued a judgment which expanded the duty of disclosure. Deputy Public Prosecutor Lee Lit Cheng argued that the breach was not deliberate; but rather, the prosecutors at trial had assessed that the statement was neutral.Justice Aedit ruled that the statement should be placed before the court to indicate a breach of disclosure obligations.