KOTA BHARU: A female teacher pleaded not guilty in the Magistrates’ Court here today to charges of causing a student’s death and injuring another through negligence at a school in April last year.
The accused, Sakinah Ismail, 57, entered the plea after the charges were read out before Magistrate Wan Mohd I’zzat Wan Abdullah.
According to the first charge, she is accused of committing a negligent act that caused the death of a Form One female student at Sekolah Menengah Kebangsaan (SMK) Tanjong Mas here at 1.40 pm on April 12 last year.
The charge was framed under Section 304A of the Penal Code, which provides for a maximum jail term of two years, a fine, or both, upon conviction.
Under the second charge, she is accused of committing a negligent act by knocking down another Form One female student with a Honda HR-V, endangering the victim’s life at the same location, time and date.
The offence is framed under Section 336 of the Penal Code, which carries a maximum jail term of three months, a fine of up to RM500, or both, upon conviction.
Deputy public prosecutor Muhammad Nadzir Abdullah appeared for the prosecution, while the accused was represented by lawyers Muhammad Hasif Hasan and Wan Fadhil Fayyadh Wan Mohd Zuhairi.
Earlier, Muhammad Nadzir sought bail of RM3,000 for both charges, but Muhammad Hasif requested the minimum bail on the grounds that his client had no previous criminal record.
The court granted the accused bail of RM2,000 with one surety for both charges and set Dec 6 for mention and the submission of documents.
On April 12 last year, a Form One female student died at the scene from severe head injuries, while another was seriously injured after being struck by the car driven by the teacher in front of the surau at SMK Tanjong Mas.
Preliminary investigations found that the teacher had allegedly pressed the accelerator by mistake before the car veered off and struck both students.