Evidence of Criminal Offences in Indonesia and Hong Kong

Evidence of Criminal Offences in Indonesia and Hong KongNameInstitutional AffiliationDate
Evidence of Criminal Offences in Indonesia and Hong Kong
In Indonesia, a Judge can only impose a legal penalty on a person after two means of legal proof have been presented to the court to proof that the accused is guilty of committing an offense. The legal means of evidence that can be used to proof that the accused is guilty of having committed an offense can come in several ways. They include the testimony of a witness, the evidence of an expert, and presentation of documents before the court, a particular condition that can act as an indicator or through the testimony of the accused.
The testimony of the witness refers to what the witness says at the court during the trial. Testimony from one witness cannot be sufficient enough to proof that the accused is guilty of the act. The provision above does not, however, apply if the evidence of the witness is accompanied by the other means of legal proof. The several testimonies of the other witnesses concerning the particular event can be used as a legal means of proof. It can only happen if the statements are related with one another in such a way that they confirm the occurrence of a specified event that is before the court or they have some circumstances that led to the occurrence of the offense. An opinion that has been derived from thoughts alone cannot be used to constitute as a testimony of the witness. Before issuing a judgment, the judge must evaluate the evidence that has been given by the witness by considering some factors. They must look at the consistency that exists between the testimony that is provided by one of the witnesses and that of the other. They should also consider the consistency of the testimony with the other legal means of proof. The judge must also take into account the way of life or morality so that he can know whether the testimony of the witness before the court can be believed or not CITATION Sim06 \l 1033 (Butt, 2006). The testimony of the witnesses which are not under oath even if they show consistency cannot at all constitute as a legal means of proof. But if the testimony is consistent with that of the witness who is under oath, then it may be used as a legal means of proof by the court.[Law of Criminal Procedure. Law of the Republic of Indonesia.] [Frans, L. (2014, July). An analysis of Criminal Proceedings in Indonesia. Journal of Humanity.]
In Hong Kong, if on cross-examination it is realized that the testimony of the witness is inconsistent with the previous evidence that was made by him that is about the subject matter, then the witness must be brought to the awareness of the statement that he had carried before drawing conclusions about the dishonest by the witness. If they do not acknowledge the statement that they made that is contradictory, then that shows inconsistency CITATION Rom \l 1033 (Rompotis). The court may, therefore, use such evidence in a court of law to determine the ruling that should be given.
Expert testimony can also be used as evidence before the court. It refers to what the expert states at the time of trial. The expert can present the documents before the court under oath as evidence. It can be minutes or documents which are in an official form presented by a competent public official. They can contain an event or a circumstance that expert heard, saw or experienced and then various reasons are given as to why the testimony can be used as evidence if required. It can also be a document which has been made by a particular expert in a given field or that falls within the scope of their field. Expert testimony can also be a written opinion of an expert concerning a certain issue in which they have been officially requested to give their opinion. The other documents that can be used by the court as long as they show a close connection with the contents that are found in the other means of legal proof. In Hong Kong, expert witnesses as a means of evidence are only used on order by the judge. It is employed in matters that cannot be understood easily and therefore the expert is supposed to state opinions to the court in an honest manner.[Rompotis, P. (n.d.). An Overview of Expert Evidence. Stephenson Hally Wood.]
The judge can also use an indicator as a means of evidence in delivering a judgment. An indicator is an act, event, or circumstance that shows consistency with one or the other circumstances and therefore it can be used to show that an offense occurred and the perpetrator of the crime can be realized. An indicator can be obtained from the testimony that is found in a document, the one given by a witness or the one that is provided by the accused. The judge should evaluate a given indicator wisely and prudently before examining his conscience in issuing a ruling. In Hong Kong, an indicator is more viewed to be a legal document that is presented before the court. The person who gives the evi...