SINGAPORE – Four convicted drug traffickers have failed in their bid to stop their executions by filing a constitutional challenge against provisions of the Misuse of Drugs Act that shift the burden of proof for specific elements of the offence to the accused person.
In a written judgment, Justice Valerie Thean said the application was filed outside the requisite three-month period since the final court decision in their criminal cases. The two provisions in question are statutory presumptions that impose a legal burden of proof on the accused to rebut them, once the facts triggering the presumptions have been proved by the prosecution.
They also argued that the provisions violate Article 12, which guarantees equal treatment under the law.
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