Originally posted by TooFree:
Law of Torts - Specific
Torts
1. An assault is an attempt or offer to apply unlawful force to the
person of another.
Assault is a crime as well as a civil
wrong. If the wrongdoer is prosecuted, and summary
proceedings are taken and the accused is convicted and punished, or
the case is dismissed and the magistrates award a dismissal, no
further action or civil proceedings may be taken in respect of the
wrong.
Ah I see... so you do agree that assault IS a crime on top of
being a civil wrong.
And at the same time, you've confirm my suspicions: that in
Singapore, placing cardboard cutouts of white elephants is a more
serious crime than assault. To the point that if you do get
assaulted to the point of disfigurement, you must complain to the
magistrate's court before the police takes action. Oh dear.
The police officers on the ground should have the
benefit of the doubt to refer the case to the Magistrate Court
since the distinction between crimes and civil wrongs does not lie
in the nature of the act itself but does depend on the legal
consequences which follow the act.
Read Sagara's post - they were rioting, and since there were 6-7
assailants, it was an illegal assembly. So gathering more than five
people to wear brown T-shirts is more serious than gathering more
than five people to bash up an innocent bystander?
So if I do get bashed up in the presence of policemen, they will
not haul those pricks away and simply tell me to report to the
magistrate's court? Okay.
2. A crime is a different category but hard to define specifically.
However, it is a public offence against the state, and the object
of the charge is to punish the offender, not to compensate the
victim.
So what's your point here? That the victim's brother was asking
for compensation when he called the police to report the
assault?
I'm done with you. You're not worth the effort.
There are other far more intelligent lifeforms out there worth
sparring with. 
