JOHOR BARU – New legal amendments seeking to abolish the mandatory death penalty will apply to ongoing criminal appeal cases and afford 840 death row inmates an opportunity to challenge their sentences.
According to a statement by the Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department (Law and Institutional Reform) Datuk Seri Azalina Othman Said, the Federal Court would be conferred powers to review the cases of 840 prisoners facing the death penalty, including 25 inmates who have had their pardon appeals rejected by the Pardons Board.
In the event the Federal Court maintains the death sentence, the inmates would be allowed to challenge the decision to the state’s Pardons Board.
Azalina explained that inmates who intend to challenge their sentences have 90 days to do so, from the time the new law takes effect.
“The new legislation will also apply to 117 prisoners facing natural life imprisonment, which comprise 47 inmates who were sentenced in court and 70 who were sentenced to death but had received pardons,” Azalina said in a statement.
Azalina today tabled the Mandatory Death Penalty Bill 2023 and Review of the Death Penalty and Lifelong Imprisonment (Federal Court Temporary Jurisdiction) 2023 bill in Parliament for first reading.
Meanwhile, Putrajaya also took into account 476 death row prisoners who have yet to exhaust their judicial appeals, stating that the new legislation will retrospectively apply to their cases.
“The abolishment of the mandatory death penalty is done with the intention to value every individual life, yet also ensuring that justice is achieved for crime victims.
“Thus, the policies proposed by the new laws happen to be a middle ground to ensure justice is preserved for all,” Azalina added. – The Vibes, March 27, 2023
