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Thailand Criminal Code
The Criminal Code listed twelve kinds of offenses categorized
as felonies. The first consisted of crimes against the security
of the kingdom, including those against the royal family,
treason, espionage, and acts that damaged friendly relations with
foreign countries. Crimes relating to public administration, such
as malfeasance in office and offenses against public officials,
constituted a second major category. Crimes relating to justice,
such as perjury or offenses against the police or the judiciary,
formed a third major group. Other felonies included crimes
against Buddhism; acts against public order and safety; offenses
relating to the counterfeiting of money, seals, stamps, and
documents; crimes against trade, including the use of false
weights and measures and misrepresentation of goods; sexual
offenses; crimes against the person; crimes against liberty and
reputation, such as false imprisonment, kidnapping, and libel;
crimes against property; and offenses such as misappropriation
and receipt of stolen property. The code also listed a wide
assortment of petty offenses that were classed as misdemeanors,
defined officially as violations punishable by imprisonment for
not more than one month, a modest fine, or both.
Five penalties for violating the code's various provisions
were stipulated: death, imprisonment, detention (restricted
residence), fines, and forfeiture of property to the state. The
death sentence was mandatory for murder or attempted murder of
any member of the royal family or for any offense likely to
endanger the life of a king; murder of a public official or
anyone assisting a public official in the performance of his or
her duty; murder committed in perpetrating another offense or in
an attempt to escape punishment; matricide or patricide;
premeditated murder; or murder accompanied by torture. Other
homicides could be punished by death but usually brought only
imprisonment. Execution was carried out by a firing squad. A
sentence of life imprisonment usually meant incarceration for
twenty years, the maximum prison term.
Children under eight years of age were not subject to
criminal penalties. Juveniles between the ages of seven and
fifteen were not fined or imprisoned but could be restricted to
their homes, placed on probation, or sent to a vocational
training school. Juvenile delinquents were, however, admonished
by the court, and their parents were required to show that they
had taken measures to ensure against repeated violations.
Offenses committed by minors between the ages of fifteen and
seventeen resulted in fines or periods of confinement amounting
to one-half the penalties prescribed for adults committing the
same crimes.
Data as of September 1987
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