"In theory, there is no difference between theory and practice; In practice, there is." - Chuck Reid

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This isn't really anything we don't already know, but it's nice to have more information about an under-studied problem.


More women say: Touch Me, Pay Me
Straits Times, 24th December
[Ed: At first I thought this was about social escorts, or something]

Lawyers say they are seeing more men settling cases with cash to avoid criminal record

THE engineer, 36, was cutting his way across the dance floor of a Clarke Quay club earlier this year when a 23-year-old woman accused him of touching her buttocks.

The bouncers stepped in. The police showed up. And though he claimed he did not touch the woman, he ended up paying $8,000 to settle the case.

'I didn't want trouble and I didn't know what my company and wife would think if they found out,' he said in an e-mail reply to The Straits Times. 'That was my only way out.'

Under the law, certain criminal offences such as simple molestation cases, wrongful restraint and causing hurt can be settled out of court if the victim agrees to drop the matter in return for some form of compensation. An offender who has had his offence compounded will not have a criminal record.

But lawyers interviewed said that increasingly, they are seeing more men like the engineer seeking help for molestation charges and paying more cash to compound their cases.

This has prompted concerns among the legal fraternity that the system could be abused by women looking for pay-outs by making false accusations and men who might be getting off the hook by paying off their victims.

At least six lawyers interviewed said that they are seeing a pattern of drunk men being accused by women in their early 20s for molesting them in clubs.

According to police records, there were 110 cases of outrage of modesty in nightspots reported last year, about the same number as the year before. In the first nine months of this year, there were 72 such cases.

But the number does not show whether some of these cases have been compounded, as both the police and the Subordinate Courts say they do not keep such records.

Lawyer Chia Boon Teck handled five such cases in the last three months.

'The men are drunk, don't remember anything and have no defence against them,' he said. 'To avoid the whole saga, they'd rather just pay.'

Lawyer Amolat Singh, who handled four such cases in the last six months, said that the incidents happened mostly in clubs in the wee hours of the morning. The accused men were usually alone.

Lawyer Subhas Anandan, recalling a case involving a director of a public listed company, believes that there are so-called 'victims' out there trying to make easy money.

He said that the director was in a club, on his way to get drinks when he stopped to talk to some women. Soon, some men approached him, accusing him of molesting the girls. To avoid public scrutiny, he paid the girl $5,000 to settle the case.

'I was convinced he was set up, I also handled another three cases where it was the same modus operandi,' Mr Subhas said. 'If it's a reasonable sum, most guys will just pay. If it goes to trial, it'll be even more in legal fees.'

Lawyers also noticed that the compensation amounts have risen, from the average $1,000 to $2,000 some years ago, to above $5,000 these days.

Lawyer S. Radakrishnan, who has handled seven compounded molestation cases in the last year, said that some victims are now asking extortionate sums of between $20,000 and $50,000.

'It bothers me because they know that the accused are scared to go to court and don't want their families to know,' he said, adding that the highest amount he has personally handled is a $20,000 case.

Mr Subhas, who once helped a client claim $25,000 in compensation from a dentist who allegedly touched her breasts, said the sums paid out depend on the severity of the offence and also the ability of the man to pay.

One case that is a talking point among lawyers is that of a 48-year-old obstetrician-gynaecologist who last year paid a woman $51,000 after he was accused of touching her breasts, abdomen and thigh.

National University of Singapore law professor Michael Hor said that the system could be abused in two ways.

A man of means committing a series of outrages of modesty could 'buy' himself out of prosecution, for example. Alternatively, a calculating victim could try to extract unreasonably large sums of money in exchange for not going to trial.

The lawyers want a registry of victims who have agreed to compound their cases to be set up, to stop any kind of abuse.

'If we keep a record, we can make sure that it's not the same people who make these claims,' said lawyer Ravinderpal Singh, who handles about five molestation cases a year.

Prof Hor thinks the list of compoundable offences could exclude cases of outrage of modesty.

Some also suggested that a compensation cap be implemented.

Lawyers interviewed said that not all victims want money. Some demand an apology - in court or published in the newspapers. Others want a donation made in their name to a charity.

There are also those who insist on their day in court, no matter what.

These are usually the real victims, lawyers say.