KUALA LUMPUR, Aug 3 — The murder trial of a 15-year-old boy accused of fatally stabbing his 16-year-old schoolmate in a girls’ toilet at a Bandar Utama school in Petaling Jaya began today, with the victim’s mother and the pathologist who conducted the post-mortem among those expected to testify.

According to New Straits Times, the prosecution is expected to call 11 witnesses during the eight-day trial before High Court judge Adlin Abdul Majid.

The pathologist is expected to be the first witness, while the victim’s mother is due to identify photographs of her daughter and other exhibits. Several teachers from the school are also expected to take the stand.

The accused, who cannot be publicly identified or photographed because he is a minor, was brought to court from the Puncak Alam Correction Centre, a juvenile detention facility.

Proceedings are being held in camera.

According to the charge sheet, the boy is accused of murdering Form Four student Yap Shing Xuen in the girls’ toilet of SMK Bandar Utama Damansara (4) in Bandar Utama, Petaling Jaya, between 9.20am and 9.35am on October 14 last year.

The murder charge carries the death penalty, or imprisonment of between 30 and 40 years and 12 strokes of the rotan upon conviction.

However, Section 97(1) of the Child Act 2001 prohibits the death penalty from being imposed on a person who was a child at the time of the offence.

Under Section 97(2), a child convicted of an offence punishable by death may instead be detained at the pleasure of the Yang di-Pertuan Agong for offences committed in the Federal Territories, or the relevant Ruler or Yang di-Pertua Negeri for offences committed in a state.

The trial follows a three-month psychiatric assessment by Hospital Bahagia Ulu Kinta director Dr Ian Lloyd Anthony, who found the boy fit to stand trial.

Three of the prosecution witnesses are children aged between 13 and 17. Their testimony will be governed by the Evidence of Child Witness Act 2007.

The boy is represented by lawyer Kitson Foong.

Deputy public prosecutors Raja Zaizul Faridah Raja Zaharudin, Aqharie Durranie Aziz and Ahmad Iqbal Azman appeared for the prosecution.

Lawyers Datuk Yasmeen Shariff and Jason Lim Jie Sheng are holding watching briefs for the Bar Council and the Human Rights Commission of Malaysia, respectively.