The Use of EO Data As Evidence in the Courts of Singapore

Abstract

Singapore has three main sources of law: legislation, judicial precedents and custom. The chapter looks at the methodology in which the courts in Singapore admit the use of such technology in the presentation of evidence such as EO data. The National University of Singapore manages and operates its own satellite Earth observation (EO) ground station and processing facility at the Centre for Remote Imaging, Sensing and Processing (CRISP). The law of evidence in Singapore is primarily based upon the Evidence Act, which originally codified the English law of evidence as it was in the 1870's. Evidence rendered by computer output comprise documents with independent probative value, and therefore constitute documentary evidence. Two recent and noteworthy decisions in Singapore concerning the use of EO data submitted as evidence in court are the Song San case and the Virtual Maps case . Keywords:Earth observation (EO) Data; Evidence Act; Singapore; song san case ; virtual maps case