Thailand Criminal Code : Part 1 / Part 2 / Part 3

    Chapter 3
    Punishments and Safety Procedures

    Part 1
    Punishments

    Section 18 The punishments for the offenders are as followed;
    (1) Death
    (2) Imprisonment
    (3) Confinement
    (4) Fine
    (5) Forfeit of Property

    Death and life imprisonment shall not be enforced on the offenders who are less than eighteen years of age.
    In case of fewer than eighteen years of age offenders who have committed the offense which shall be punished with death or life imprisonment, the punishment, as aforesaid, shall be deemed as commuted as imprisoned for fifty years.

    Section 19 Anyone who received the death punishment shall receive an injection or toxic injection.

    The rule and procedure of execution shall follow the regulation designated by the Ministry of Justice by as announced in the Government Gazette.

    Section 20 All those offenders who were determined by laws to received punishment by both imprisonment and fine, shall received only imprisonment if the Court advised.

    Section 21 The calculation period of imprisonment, the first day the offenders served the imprisonment shall be calculated as a whole day, irrespective of the number of hours.

    If the period for calculation is determined in months, a month shall be counted for thirty days, and if determined in years, it shall be calculated according to the official calendar.

    The offenders shall be released from imprisonment the next day in which the period of imprisonment reaches its terminations.

    Section 22 The imprisonment punishment shall be on the day the judgment is passed. If the sentenced person was kept in custody prior to the Court’s judgment, the number of days in custody shall be deducted from the period of imprisonment according to the judgment unless the judgment provides otherwise.

    In case the judgment provides otherwise, the total number of days in custody prior to the Court’s judgment shall not exceed the maximum rate of punishment as provided by the law for the committed offense. However, this shall not affect the provision of Section 91.

    Section 23 Any offender who was given imprisonment and the highest term of the judgment is not exceeding three months, if the offenders have not received imprisonment punishment before or was punished due to the commitment of negligence or by a petty offense, the Court may inflict the punishment of not more than three months of confinement on behalf of the imprisonment punishment.

    Section 24 Anyone under the confinement shall be confined in a place for detaining which is not prison, police station, or any place where the inquiry official uses for superintending the alleged offender.

    If the Court sees appropriate, it may order confinement in the offenders’ dwelling place or others who accept him or at other places which can be used in order to be suitable to his kind or condition.

    If it appears to the Court that the confinement of the detained person according to paragraph 1 or paragraph 2 may cause a danger to such person or make the person depending on him for subsistence excessive trouble or there is another exceptional circumstance shows that it is not advisable to detain the detained person in the place as aforesaid, the Court will issue an order to detain the detained person in other place but not such person's dwelling-house with the consent of owner or occupier of the premises. In such case, the Court is empowered to designate any condition to detained and the condition to the detained person to practice, and if the owner or occupier of the premise as aforesaid consents, the Court may issue an order to appoint such person as controller and it shall be deemed that the appointed person is the government official according to this Code.

    Section 25 A person inflicted with the punishment of confinement in a determined place shall receive maintenance from such a place. But, subject to the regulations of the place, he is entitled to obtain food from outside at his own expense, to use his own clothes, to receive visitors for at least one hour a day, and to receive and send letters.

    A person inflicted with the punishment of confinement must work according to the rules, regulations, and discipline. If he desires to do other work, he shall be permitted to select according to the category of work that he is willing to do, provided that it is not contrary to the rules, regulations, discipline, or safety of the such place.

    Section 26 If the person punished by the confinement is confined in their own dwelling place or in the dwelling place of the other person consenting to accept such person, a such confined person is entitled to carry on their own profession or occupation in the aforesaid place. For this purpose, the Court may determine the conditions for the confined person to do anything or not, as the Court deems appropriate.

    Section 27 If during the detainment of a sentence to imprisonment person under section 23, it appears to the court itself or it seems to the court according to the statement of the public prosecutor or the person having control and management of the place of detention that:

    The detained person is in violation of rules, regulations, or discipline of the place for detention.
    (1) The detained person is in non-fulfillment of the conditions designated by the Court, or
    (2) The detained person is adjudged to be imprisoned inflict the imprisonment.

    The Court may change the detention into imprisonment with the terms designated as the Court deems appropriate, but it must not be out of the time designated by detention which the detained person must receive in the future.

    Section 28 Any person has inflicted with the punishment of fine, such person must pay the fine as determined by the judgment to the Court.

    Section 29 If any person inflicted with the punishment of fine and fails to pay the fine within thirty days from the day on which the Court has passed the judgment, the property of such person shall be confiscated or the person's right to property such property may be in order to pay the fine., or else such person shall be confined in lieu of fine. But, if the Court has reasons to suspect that such person is likely to evade the payment of the fine, the Court may order such person to find security, or may order such person to be confined in lieu of fine in the near time.

    The provision in the second paragraph of Section 24 shall not apply to the confinement in lieu of fine.
    Section 29/1 In the case where the fined person fails to pay the fine within the time limit under section 29 paragraph one, the court shall have the power to issue an execution warrant for the seizure of property or to attach a claim in property of that person to use the fine

    The execution under paragraph one The Civil Procedure Code shall be applied. compulsory, mutatis mutandis provided that the appointed court official and the public prosecutor shall have the powers and duties in executing the execution and the executing officer has the power and duty to seize property or attach rights
    Public prosecutor. In this regard, the State agency shall not demand fees or expenses from the execution operator.
    The committee for investigating property of a person inflicted with a fine by a public prosecutor for execution under paragraph two shall comply with the rules, procedures and conditions prescribed in the regulations of the Attorney General.

    The provisions of this section do not affect the court's order under section 29 paragraph one.

    Section 30 In case of the detention on behalf of fine, it shall be taken hold of the rate of two hundred baht per day, and irrespective of whether one offense or several offenses, it is prohibited the detention in excess of one year period unless in case of the Court gives a judgment on fine as started from eighty thousand baht. The Court will issue an order to detain on behalf of the fine as the period of time is in excess of one year but not out of two years.

    In the calculation of the period of the time, the date the detention on behalf of the fine begins shall be calculated together, and the full day shall be calculated without consideration of the hour amount.

    In case of the fined person was detained before the Court’s trial, the days that person was detained shall be deducted from the fined money amount which is deemed at the rate of two hundred baht per day unless such person is adjudged and inflicted both imprisonment and fine. In such case, if the days must be deducted from time then it shall be deducted according to Section 22 before it shall be deducted from the remaining amount of the fine.

    When the fined person has been detained on behalf of fine is due, that person shall be released on the day following the date terminated, if the fine has been pain plenary, one shall be released without delay.

    Section 30/1 In the event that the court decides to impose fine on persons who are not juristic persons and those persons do not have money to pay the fine those persons may submit a request to the Court of First Instance adjudicating the case for social service or public service work in lieu of a fine. Or if it appears to the court at the time of adjudicating the case that any fined person is entitled to social services or public benefit under this section and, if the fined person agrees, the court may order that person to perform social service or public benefit work in lieu of a fine.

    Consideration of the petition under the first paragraph: When the court has considered the financial status, history and the degree of culpability of the fined person, the court may, in its discretion, order that person to perform social service. or perform work in the public interest in lieu of the fine under the supervision of the probation officer, government officials, government agency or an organization whose objective is to serve social, charitable, public or public interest provided that said organization or agency agrees to be responsibility for implementing the social service or work in the public interest.

    In case of the Court issuing an order to the fined person to perform Social Service or public benefit on behalf of the fine, the Court shall design the nature or kind of work, person taking care of work, date beginning work, period of work and hours amount deemed as one day work, but all these, by taking into consideration of sex, age, past record, religion, behavior, intelligence, education, health, mind-condition, temperament, occupation, envelopment or the fined person's offence-condition together, and the Court will design any condition to the fined person to perform for amending, renewing or protecting such person to commit another offence.

    If after that, it appears to the Court that the circumstance in respect of Social Service work or Public Interest Work of the fined person changed, the Court may amend that order as he sees fit.

    In the determination of the period of the hour time on behalf of the fine according to Paragraph 3, the provision of Section 30 shall be enforced by analogy, and in case the Court does not design the fined person to work continuously, the said work must be within the period of two years as from the date beginning the work as decided by the Court.

    On behalf of determination of hour time according to Paragraph 3, the President of the Supreme Court shall be empowered in issuing a judiciary government rule of Court of Justice determining an hour amount deemed as one day work for Social Service or Public Interest as deemed advisable.

    Section 30/2 If after the Court has issued an order granting the permission under Section 30/1, then it appears to the Court itself or according to prosecutor or official's statement that the fined person has enough money to pay the fine in the time to file a petition under Section 30/1 or violates or not to perform according to an order or a condition designated by the Court, the Court will revoke an order premising as aforesaid and fine or detain on behalf of the fine by deduct the work day amount from fined money amount.

    In the period of social service or public interest on behalf of the fine, if the fined person does not want to continue with the said service, it may be changed to fine or detention on behalf of the fine. In this case, the Court shall issue an order premising according to petition by deducting a workday amount from the fined money amount.

    Section 30/3 The Court’s order under Section 30/1 and Section 30/2 is the final order.

    Section 31 In case of the Court shall pass judgment inflicting the punishment of fine on several offenders for the same offence and in the same case, the Court shall inflict the punishment of fine on every individual offender.

    Section 32 Any property as prescribed by the law is illegal to make or process shall be forfeited whether it belongs to the offender and there was anyone punished according to the judgment or not.

    Section 33 For the forfeit of property, the Court shall, besides having the power to forfeit under the law as specially provided for that purpose, have the power to forfeit the following properties as well, namely;
    (1) A property used or possessed for use in the commission of an offence by a person, or
    (2) A property acquired by a person through the commission of an offence.
    Unless such property belongs to the other person who does not conspire at the commission of the offence.

    Section 34 All Properties;
    (1) Which have been given under Section 143, Section 144, Section 149, Section 150, Section 167, Section 201, or Section 202, or

    (2) Which have been given in order to induce a person to commit an offence, or as a reward to a person for committing an offence, shall be forfeited wholly, unless those properties belong to the other person who does not conspire at the commission of the offence.

    Section 35 The properties forfeited by the Court's judgment shall be vested in the State. The Court may give judgment that such properties must be rendered useless, or destroyed.

    Section 36 In the case that the Court has already given an order for the forfeit of the properties according to Section 33 or Section 34, if it appears afterward by the submission of the real owner that he has not conspired with the commission of such offence. The Court shall give an order for the return of the properties if such properties are still in possession of the official. But the submission of the real owner shall be made to the Court within one year from the day of the final judgment.

    Section 37 If the per who was ordered by the Court to deliver the forfeited property does not deliver it within the time determined by the Court, the Court shall have the power to give an order as followed;
    (1) To seize such property.
    (2) To pay its value, or to seize other property of such person to compensate for its value in full, or
    (3) In the case that the Court sees that such person has the ability to deliver the ordered property but does not deliver it, or such person can pay its value but does not pay it; the Court shall have the power to confine such person until he complies with the order but this shall not exceed the period of one year. If afterward it appears to the Court itself or by the submission of such person that such person cannot deliver the property or pay its value, the Court may give order to release such person before the expiration of such period.

    Section 38 The punishment shall terminate on the death of the offender.

 

Unofficial translation by Chaninat and Leeds, Thai Attorneys