Convictions Announced in Police Torture Death Case

江西万建国被刑讯逼供致死案宣判

Caijing Online, 2009-08-12

The Nanchang (Jiangxi Province) Intermediate Court announced the verdict and sentences in the case against four police officers accused of torturing Wan Jianguo, who died during police questioning in July 2008. Nanchang police had detained Wan in July 2008 on suspicion of selling defective immune globulin to a local hospital where six patients died from the substance. A month earlier, however, another company had already admitted to selling the immune globulin to the hospital. While in police custody, two separate shifts of officers, allegedly upon the orders of chief criminal investigator Xia Xiangdong, repeatedly beat Wan with wooden clubs, police nightsticks and electric batons in the hopes of extracting a confession. They also, upon Xia's explicit instructions, suspended Wan upside down and swung his head into a metal railing.

The court found one officer, Deng Hongfei, guilty of intentional injury and sentenced him to 12 years fixed-term imprisonment. Chief criminal investigator Xia received a one year sentence for “torture to extract confession.” The two other officers charged with torture were found guilty but exempted from punishment—five other officers who admitted to torturing Wan were not prosecuted because “the circumstances of their crimes were minor . . . and they have displayed contrition.” Wan's widow, Wu Peifen, described the convictions as “extremely unjust” and vowed to file a prosecutorial protest. Wu's attorneys plan to jointly submit a “citizen suggestion letter” to the Supreme People's Court calling for consistency in the application of law and conviction and sentencing standards in cases of torture to extract confession resulting in death.

Henan High Court to Release Opinion on “Criminal Cases Suitable for Probation”

河南拟推广“缓刑预告书”制 犯轻罪可能不用坐牢

Xinhua News, 2009-08-10

The Henan Provincial High Court has been experimenting with increasing and standardizing probation for criminal defendants. In the last three years, the court has sentenced 612 people to only probation without a single case of recidivism among that group, compared to the previous two year period in which only 47 people received probation and 3 became repeat offenders. The court attributes part of its success to the “probation advance notices” it issues to defendants explaining why they received probation and their responsibilities while on probation. In response to public skepticism about “breaking the law and not going to jail,” a basic-level court president, Zheng Shuiquan, explains that probation is only allowed for “minor” criminal cases where the maximum punishment would be less than three years fixed-term imprisonment; “criminal elements” must also display contrition and not be a threat to society. Province-wide, over 17,000 defendants received probation in 2008, accounting for 22.6% of all criminal convictions.

“Supreme Court: Uphold Legal Standards When Adjudicating Mafia-Related Cases”

最高法：审涉黑案坚持法定标准

Beijing News, 2009-08-10

At a meeting of the “Anti-Mafia Special Struggle Leadership Small-Group,” Supreme People's Court Vice-President Zhang Jun called for courts to “respect legal-defined procedures, and strictly keep check on facts, evidence and the application of law” while “adjudicating cases involving underworld forces.” At the same time, Zhang called for courts to “come down hard” on the leaders of organized crime and those—presumably in government—who protect them: “in deciding punishment, be strict; in implementing punishments, be strict.” Of the nearly 700 decided cases in the current anti-mafia campaign, 3,089 defendants have been sentenced to over five years imprisonment, life imprisonment or capital punishment, allowing the courts to boast of a “heavy punishment rate” of 46.55%.

Taiyuan Procuratorate to Implement “Arrest and Prosecution Question-Answer” System

太原市检察院试行“捕诉答疑”制度

Xinhua News, 2009-08-07

To “better guarantee parties to criminal litigation's right to know, right of expression and right of supervision over procuratorate organs,” the Taiyuan (Shanxi Province) Procuratorate will begin the trial implementation of a new “arrest and prosecution question-answer” system. Parties to cases, their close relatives, legal representatives or defenders may apply to the procuratorate with questions regarding arrest and prosecution decisions. They may also request explanations of prosecutors' procedural actions and questions of applicable law. Procuratorate offices are not, however, required to answer submitted questions and may respond to applications with a refusal to accept, accompanied with an explanation outlining the reason for rejection.

Detention Center Guards Tried in “Hide-and-Seek” Prison Death Case

云南“躲猫猫”案两民警受审

Southern Weekend, 2009-08-07

In a five hour trial at the Songming County (Kunming, Yunnan Province) Court, Li Dongming and Su Shaolu defended themselves against charges of dereliction of duty and abuse of detainees stemming from the February 2009 beating death of Li Qiaoming at the hands of his cellmates. Li pleaded not guilty to dereliction of duty, asserting that he had never been properly trained and was not on duty when Li died. His defense lawyer further argued that criminal liability for dereliction of duty must involve a “serious breach of duty,” which Li' actions—or lack thereof—do not satisfy. Su admitted using physical punishments to discipline detainees, but claimed he always exercised “restraint” and aimed his “beatings” at “prison bullies” only. The court's verdict will be announced at a future date. The three detainees accused of beating Li have been charged by prosecutors with intentional injury.

Minister of Justice Calls for Strengthened “Guidance” over Lawyers in Sensitive Cases

司法部:切实做好律师代理敏感案件和群体性事件指导工作

ChinaCourt, 2009-08-07

At the national Ministry of Justice directors conference, Minister of Justice Wu Aiying called for the “increased strengthening of education and management of lawyers' ranks.” The MoJ should “earnestly do well the work of guiding lawyers representing sensitive cases and mass disturbances, educate and lead lawyers at large to stress politics, consider general conditions, observe discipline, and loyally execute lawyers' responsibilities.” Wu also stressed the importance of Party leadership over legal work and the need for lawyers' work to have “correct political orientation.”

Woman Executed for Running Massive Ponzi Scheme

丽水“小姑娘”集资案主犯被执行死刑 曾集资7亿多元

Xinhua News, 2009-08-05

The Lishui (Zhejiang Province) Intermediate Court announced the 5 August execution of Du Yimin for fraudulent fundraising. Du, originally convicted in March 2008, allegedly operated a massive ponzi-like scheme that collected a total of over 700 million RMB—128 million of which has not been recovered—by enticing investors with monthly interest rates ranging from 1.8% to 10%. In approving her capital sentence, the Supreme People's Court noted that Du's acts “created especially massive economic losses and the circumstances of her crime were especially egregious.”

Presiding Judge Comments on Contentious Hu Bin Traffic Death Case

主审法官解密杭州飙车案

Southern Weekend, 2009-07-30

In an effort to appease public anger and confusion over the sentencing of defendant Hu Bin, the presiding judge in the case, Pan Bo, held a press conference at the Xihu District (Hangzhou, Zhejiang Province) Court. Pan attempted to dispel widespread internet speculation that Hu—who allegedly struck and killed a pedestrian in a crosswalk while driving over twice the speed limit—had not actually stood trial but had instead hired a look-alike substitute to falsely act as defendant in the case. Pan also explained why the court could only find Hu guilty of creating a traffic accident and not endangering public safety, which carries much higher maximum penalties. Hu received “only” a three year sentence of fixed imprisonment because the court, following prosecutors, could not establish the “especially egregious circumstances” element necessary for increased punishment. In response to the public outrage surrounding the case, Pan noted that he too detested the prevalence of dangerous speeding on Hangzhou's city streets, but “while adjudicating the case, I did my best not to read related reports in the media, and also did my best not to discuss this case with relatives and friends, out of fear it would influence the verdict.”

Supreme Court Approves Death Penalty for Two Counterfeiters

近七千万假币仍未被缴获 两制造假币者被核准死刑

Xinhua News, 2009-07-31

The Supreme People's Court approved death penalty sentences for two defendants, Xu Shaorong and Zhu Yingwu, found guilty of being the principal offenders in a massive counterfeit Renminbi case. In explaining its decision, the court noted that nearly 70 million yuan in counterfeit Renminbi had not been recovered by the state. The court is also publicizing the case with three other “model” counterfeit currency cases for study and review by lower courts.

Shanxi High Court Certifies 79 “Clean Government Supervisors”

山西高院聘请79名廉政监督员 监督法院审判工作

Xinhua News, 2009-07-28

To promote “honesty and fairness” in the local judicial system, the Shanxi Provincial High Court approved 79 people to act as “clean government supervisors.” The “supervisors”—chosen from people's congresses, political consultative committees, “relevant government departments,” the media and “other fields”—will have the power to “inspect, consult and advice” a wide range of judicial activities. In “major cases and cases with a relatively large social impact,” the supervisors “can” supervise the entire process from the case filing, adjudication and execution. All instances of “bribe seeking, bribe accepting and perversions of justice” are to be reported to the appropriate procuratorate.