Sushila Rani a/p Ramasamy v Kerajaan Malaysia & Ors

Appellant(s): Sushila Rani A/P Ramasamy

Respondent(s):

• Kerajaan Malaysia
• Menteri Dalam Negeri Malaysia
• Ketua Pengarah Jabatan Penjara Kluang

• YA Datuk Ravinthran a/l Paramaguru
• Dato' Dr. Choo Kah Sing
• YA Dato' Ahmad Kamal Bin Md. Shahid

• The deceased, an inmate serving a 10-year sentence, was placed in an isolated cell after being found in possession of illicit drugs within the prison.
• Two days into his isolation, the deceased was discovered hanging by his trousers from the window grill of his cell and was subsequently pronounced dead at the hospital.
• The appellant, the grandmother of the deceased, initiated a dependency claim against the respondents alleging that the prison authorities were negligent in failing to prevent the deceased from committing suicide.

• Whether the respondents breached their duty of care by failing to prevent the suicide, specifically regarding whether the risk of the deceased taking his own life was foreseeable.
• Whether the existence of a "sealed packet" containing a knife for emergency use (per standard operating procedure) constituted evidence that the prison authority foresaw a specific risk of suicide.
• Whether the findings of a Coroner’s Inquest, which concluded that the death was caused by "persons unknown," are binding on the High Court in a subsequent civil action for negligence.

• The Court held that there is no general obligation to treat every prisoner as a suicide risk; a breach of duty only arises if a specific risk is apparent and known to the authorities based on the inmate's history.
• The Court found no breach of duty as the deceased had no recorded history of self-harm while in custody, and the general provision of emergency knives in sealed packets does not establish a specific foreseeable risk for a particular inmate.
• The Court affirmed that the findings of an Inquest are not binding on a civil Court, as the Court is required to make its own independent findings based on evidence and testimonies tested through cross-examination during trial.