Abstract:
This article discusses the fault element of rashness in the context of the group of Penal Code offences that deal with the doing of a rash Act. Despite their general application, many cases involving these provisions are related to bad driving. The existing cases will be examined and it will be pointed out that while the definition of rashness as advertent risk-taking had previously been affirmed as the current state of Singapore law, two recent cases involving bad driving suggest that the courts have extended rashness to include inadvertent risk-taking. This article will examine the arguments in support of inadvertent risk-taking as well as the subjectivist objections and suggest that a definition of rashness should include situations where the offender is indifferent to or shows a disregard for the personal safety of others, whether or not he is conscious of the danger his conduct created.