Why what victim wore could matter
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For reasons as simple as locating the victim on closed-circuit television (CCTV) footage, or retrieving items for forensic analysis, what the victim wore during the assault is important to uncover the facts.
It should not be construed as judging or placing blame on the victim, said defence lawyers and a police investigating officer.
Deputy Superintendent of Police (DSP) Kimberly Ang, an officer-in-charge of a team at the Serious Sexual Crime Branch in the Criminal Investigation Department, said that she understood why a layman would think that officers asking a victim what she wore could sound like they were imposing responsibility on the victim.
DSP Ang explained that the line of questioning is part of the fact-finding process. For example, when investigators are going through CCTV footage, they need to know what the victim was wearing to be able to find her.
She added: "Understandably for victims, when you're asking them intrusive or sensitive questions before they are willing to share, they're not going to just tell a total stranger. And they will be worried what (the investigating officer) thinks of them."
Officers reassure the victims not to worry about the officers' opinion about them, because they are concerned only with finding out the facts to help the victims, said DSP Ang.
Defence lawyers also emphasised the objective need to ask questions about clothing.
Ms Gloria James from Gloria James-Civetta & Co said: "While we understand the concerns that arise from such questions, questions on clothing may be useful in identifying victims from video footage which the authorities may have. This could be useful to trace an unknown perpetrator, or for them to retain the clothing for forensic analysis."
Aside from helping to identify the people involved, Ms Joyce Khoo from Quahe Woo & Palmer noted that dress choices could be relevant in establishing whether force was used to remove articles of clothing.
She added: "Issues surrounding promiscuity are irrelevant to consent and do little to help any defence."