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 Community
Issues
 Killer Litter
In recent weeks, more killer-litter cases have occurred. The local media as well as the
general community have sought to air their views on the matter.
We bring you some of the arguments presented, as well as the official
views of the government.
Our task is not to comment on the issue, but to put information collected
from various sources here and let you form your own opinion.
Odd-job labourer gets jail for killer-litter
An odd-job
labourer was sentenced by a district court on Wednesday 6 Dec 2000 to the maximum
of three months in jail for each of two killer-litter offences. LEE Seng
Leong, 38, threw his mother's ancestral tablet, an incense burner and a
ceramic cup from the second storey of the Housing Board block he was
living in. Shortly afterwards, he threw down a flower pot from the ninth
storey of the block of flats. LEE was a repeat offender. In 1996, he was
sentenced to three weeks' jail for throwing several flower pots and a
stool down from a second-storey corridor in a fit of rage. (Straits
Times 8 Dec 2000)
Woman jailed for throwing a 5-kg packet of rice & ketchup bottle
Seamstress YONG Choog
Chiang, 65, was sentenced on 17 Nov 2000 to three weeks' jail for throwing
a 5-kg packet of rice and a ketchup bottle from her 11th storey flat in
Block 315 Ubi Ave 1 on 3 Jun 2000. No one was hurt in the incident. At the
time, YONG and her 70-year- old husband had been quarrelling over two
green chillis which she had picked up from the ground at the foot of their
block.
Former nurse, whose flower pot fell and killed Cheryl GOH, gets a fine
Former nurse Annie LIM, 59,
whose flower pot fell from the ledge of her 22nd-storey flat in Block 54
in Kent Road killing five-year-old Cheryl GOH on the ground, was fined
S$10,000 on 16 Nov 2000 by a district judge. The pot, which fell off LIM's
balcony ledge during strong winds more than six months ago, was not
secured.
Man
jailed for throwing wooden cupboard from 11th storey
Harzli Rahim, 27,
unemployed, was jailed for two months on 23 Oct 2000 for throwing a wooden
cupboard from his 11th-storey flat in Block 25, Hougang Ave 3 on 21 Oct
2000.
Man
jailed for throwing wooden chair
Tan Kok Chuan, 26, was
jailed for six weeks on 12 Oct 2000 for throwing a wooden chair from the
seventh storey of Block 439 Ang Mo Kio Ave 10 in July 2000. No one was
hurt in the incident.
Teenager placed on probation for killer-litter offence
A 15-year-old girl who flung
a plastic bottle and water bomb from a ninth-floor flat in Bishan St 22
was placed on probation by the Juvenile Court for 15 months during
which she would have to be at home between 9pm and 6am. She was also
asked to do 180 hours of community service. (Straits Times 18 Oct 2000)
Man
jailed for killer-litter offence
A man who suffers from
schizophrenia was sentenced to six weeks in jail by a magistrate's court
on 12 Oct 2000 for throwing a wooden chair from the seventh storey of
Block 439 Ang Mo Kio Ave 10 on 11 Jul 2000. TAN Kok Chuan, 26, had
pleaded guilty to a charge of endangering human lives and the personal
safety of others.
Schoolgirl put on probation for 15 months for killer-litter
A 14-year-old
schoolgirl who threw water bombs, chicken bones and two glass bottles from
a ninth-floor flat in Bishan St 22 was put on 15 months' probation and
ordered to do 180 hours of community service by the Juvenile Court on 26
Sep 2000. The incident took place on 7 May 2000 at about 4.30pm.
Killer-Litter offender to be evicted from HDB flat immediately
The Housing &
Development Board (HDB) announced on 19 Sep 2000 that it will take back
the flat of killer-litter offender Madam Wong Sook Ying, 47, immediately.
It decided to mete out the harshest punishment to her as she is a repeat
offender. It will give another four offenders and their families six
months to move out of their HDB flats, and issue final warning letters to
another four offenders. The HDB said that it had based its decision on
revised guidelines concerning convicted killer-litter offenders.
Man
jailed for killer-litter
A man who flew into a
rage during a family dispute hurled eight kitchen items - a three-litre
bottle of cooking oil, a wok, a pot, a claypot, two bottles of soya sauce,
a metal pot and a ladle - out of the sixth-storey window of his flat at
Block 244 in Ang Mo Kio on 13 Aug 2000. TAN Ong, 50, an odd-job labourer,
was jailed three months by a magistrate's court for the rash act. (ST 17
Sep 2000)
Woman arrested for causing 5-year-old Cheryl GOH's death
A woman has been
arrested in connection with the killer-litter death of five-year-old
Cheryl GOH, who was hit by a falling flower pot on 30 Apr 2000. The
59-year-old woman was arrested on 2 Sep 2000 for causing Cheryl's death by
a rash or negligent act. She is out on police bail of S$5000. (ST 6 Sep
2000)
Minister MAH speaking on killer litter in Parliament
A special provision
will be made in the penal code to target killer litter, spelling out
harsher maximum penalties for culprits, said National Development Minister
Mah Bow Tan on 25 Aug 2000. Although flats would still be taken back, this
measure was reserved for "very serious, or recalcitrant
offenders", who would also be debarred for five years from buying or
renting another HDB flat. In cases which do not warrant such severe
action, the culprit and his household would have to relinquish their
high-rise flat, but could still buy or rent an HDB flat on the ground or
first floor. But, he would not be allowed to buy or rent one on higher
floors, for at least three years from the date of conviction. In less
serious cases, Mr Mah said, the HDB will issue a final written warning.
Girl
who threw glass bottles lands in court
A 14-year-old girl was ticked
off by a magistrate on 24 Aug 2000 for throwing two glass bottles from her
ninth-floor flat "for fun". No one was hurt in the incident
which occurred on 7 May 2000 in Bishan St 22. The girl cannot be named as
she is a minor. The case will be heard again on 26 Sep 2000.
E-mails received by Government Feedback Unit
The Government's Feedback
Unit received a record 801 e-mail postings in July 2000. July's hottest topic was killer-litter, and the debate if culprits should be
evicted from their HDB flats. The issue brought 251 responses by e-mail
alone. 68% of contributors disagreed with the Housing Board's decision
to repossess the flats of convicted killer-litter culprits. They felt it
would penalise innocent family members. The breaking of scholarship
bonds was hotly debated as well, with 49 e-mail responses. More than
nine out of ten contributors felt government scholarship holders should
serve out at least part of their bond.
Two
get jail sentences for killer-litter
Two people have been
given two-month jail sentences each for killer-litter offences. Pua Kin,
53, admitted throwing three empty glass bottles from the fifth-floor
kitchen window of her Tampines flat at Block 837 on 12 Jul 2000. Lisa Ho
Soh Tee, 43, was also jailed after she admitted throwing a metal bucket
from her seventh-storey flat in Hougang Ave 3. No one was injured in
either incident.
Killer-litter laws being reviewed: National Development Minister Mah
Killer-litter laws are
being reviewed to allow for a wider range of punishments to reflect the
varying degrees of severity in the offence. This is because these degrees
are not captured in the existing laws, said National Development Minister
Mah Bow Tan on 7 Aug 2000. Now both the Penal Code and the Housing and
Development Act have provisions to prosecute killer-litter offenders.
However, he said, the Act offers two extremes: "You either take back
the flat or issue a summons. There's nothing in between."
"Between compulsory acquisition and a warning, surely you should give
the HDB some options." "We want to send a strong message, yet
not every case merits compulsory acquisition." "We are now
re-looking the legislation to see whether we can calibrate the penalties
to punish individual cases more fairly."
Man
lands in court for throwing killer-litter
Ten pieces of wood, two
Chinese lanterns, some broken pieces of tiles and two orange peels came
flying out of a 21st-storey HDB flat on on 4 Aug 2000. Seah Kim Guan, 50,
was charged in a magistrate's court on 5 Aug 2000. He allegedly threw the
items out of his living room in Block 226, Jurong East Street 21, at about
9.30am that day. He is being remanded at the Institute of Mental Health
until his case is mentioned again on 25 Aug 2000.
Another killer-litter case in court
A youth who threw an empty
perfume bottle out of his fourth-storey window during a quarrel with his
girlfriend was jailed for four weeks on 31 Jul 2000. Mohamed Yusri Abdul
Karim, 18, a full-time national serviceman, pleaded guilty in a
magistrate's court to a charge of endangering the personal safety of
others by his rash act.
New
killer-litter incident
A fish tank, two chairs
and other items came flying out of a ninth-floor flat on Thursday 27 Jul
2000, the largest quantity of killer-litter thrown out in a single
incident this year. A 37-year-old man, said to be mentally unsound, was
arrested after a resident of Blk 129, Rivervale Street, who heard the
sound of breaking glass at 8.50pm, alerted the authorities.
Excerpt of a letter to the Forum, The Straits Times dated 26 Jul 2000
"I feel that it is
perfectly reasonable to have your house taken back by the authorities if
you throw things down from your flat, or to have your car seized if you
drink and drive. After all, killer litter and drink driving are both
irresponsible acts that endanger others. Why shouldn't the authorities
confiscate your belongings when you use them to 'confiscate' the lives of
others?" Pan Minmin
More killer-litter cases brought to court
Two juveniles and a
woman were charged separately on 24 Jul 2000 with killer-litter offences.
One of the girls, aged 14, allegedly threw two glass bottles and a plastic
bag filled with water from a ninth-floor flat in Bishan on 7 May 2000. The
other, also aged 14, is said to have thrown a plastic bottle and a
water-filled plastic bag from the same unit the same day. In another
court, Michelle Lim Seok Hiang, 49, was charged with throwing an
assortment of items from her fourth-floor flat in Block 217, Ang Mo Kio
Avenue 1 at 2.20am on 22 Jul 2000.
Excerpt of letter to Forum, The Straits Times dated 20 Jul 2000
"Let not undue
sympathy be lavished on the offender nor due sympathy be withheld from the
victims - a frequent criticism of the American legal system and media
circus. However, it is a well-established axiom of law, justice and
humanity that, as far as possible, the innocent should not be punished,
either wittingly or unwittingly, for the crimes of the
guilty."..."The eviction of tenants from a flat because of the
crimes of one member repudiates a vital legal principle, violates
humanitarian principles, ignores compassion and defies reason." Joseph
Wong Kok Sen
Killer-Litter Case No.3 in seven days
Another Housing Board
resident has been arrested for throwing killer litter - the third within
seven days. The 33-year-old man was spotted throwing four flower pots down
from the 11th storey of Block 10 Teck Whye Lane in Choa Chu Kang on 18 Jul
2000 at about 11am. No one was injured but both acts were witnessed by two
residents who called the police.
National Development Minister Mah speaks on killer-litter cases
Taking back the flats
of convicted killer-litter offenders is a harsh measure, but it is needed
to press home the point that anti-social behaviour will not be tolerated,
said National Development Minister Mah Bow Tan on 17 Jul 2000. At a media
briefing on killer-litter, he said the HDB preferred to use public
education, but the recent spate of incidents showed that education alone
was not enough.
Killer-Litter Case No. 2
A 3-year-old girl was hurt
when a beer mug flung out of a window by someone from Blk 535, Jurong
West Street 52, hit her on the head. Lavannya Sivanandan received 10
stitches to close her head wound.
DPM Lee Hsien Loong on HDB's action
The Housing Board (HDB) has
to be firm with people who throw rubbish out of the window, and is
justified in saying it would take back the flats of three HDB residents
convicted of killer-litter offences, said Deputy Prime Minister Lee
Hisen Loong on 8 Jul 2000.
HDB to take back three flats
The Housing &
Development Board (HDB) plans to take back three flats whose occupiers
were convicted of "killer litter" offences. It will acquire
all three flats compulsorily. These will be the first flats reported to
be acquired for this reason since 1991 when a family who lived in a
rented flat in Dover Rd was asked to leave after being convicted twice
for killer litter offences. (The Straits Times 8 Jul 2000)
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