The phenomenon of planking, pioneered by cartoon character Snoopy, adopting a different guise as “The Lying Down Game”, and making a dramatic comeback in recent years, has taken Singapore by storm. In fact, May 25th has been named Annual Planking Day for planking enthusiasts and newcomers alike to celebrate the joys of planking.
Having said that, planking done wrong can become deadly, and the law frowns upon it under certain circumstances. Planking can be cause for arrest by police if it constitutes trespass, under the Penal Code, as well as the Protected Places and Protected Areas Act. Therefore, plankers who plank in the wrong places may find themselves unable to plank for much longer. In fact, police officers in Queensland, Australia, arrested a youth in the city of Gladstone after he was found planking on a police car. He was charged for being found on police establishment without lawful excuse.
In addition, if a planker endangers and causes injury or death to another person, or damage to the property of others, all of which are criminal offences under the Penal Code, he would be charged accordingly. For example, if a planker lies on a road, and a blind man trips and falls over the planker, sustaining an injury as a result, the planker may be charged for voluntarily causing hurt, under section 321 of the Penal Code, as long as he knows that it is likely to cause hurt, and the planking in fact does causes the hurt.
