(Minghui.org) Jingyang District Court officials in Deyang City, Sichuan Province covertly sentenced Falun Gong practitioner Ms. Jian Yicong to three years of imprisonment in November 2012. Ms. Jian's family appealed the verdict. Deyang City Intermediate Court Judge Xu Bin tried all means possible to prevent Ms. Jian's lawyer from defending her. The lawyer has officially sued the judge.
Judge Xu Bin Deliberately Delays the Victim's Appeal
After Ms. Jian's family learned that Xu Bin was the judge in charge of her case, they repeatedly asked to meet with him to go through defense-related procedures, but Xu Bin delayed the meeting till the New Year, and then further delayed it by telling them that he would be going to Beijing and would return on January 12, 2013. On January 14, the lawyer brought all the documents with him and went to the Deyang City Intermediate Court, but Judge Xu Bin was still not there.
Ms. Jian's family and her lawyer went to the intermediate court again at 8:30 a.m. on January 15, 2013, to submit defense documents, and asked to consult the case files. A staff member dialed Judge Xu Bin's office phone, but nobody answered; she then called his cell phone, but still there was no answer.
After several setbacks, the lawyer was able to enter an office on the 4th floor, where he happened to hear a judge tell a staff member: “One thing is to submit Jian Yicong's materials...” The judge stopped talking when he saw the lawyer and Ms. Jian's family. After introducing themselves, the staff member was surprised and asked, “Are you Jian Yicong's lawyer?” It was obvious that the court staff had no idea that Ms. Jian had hired a lawyer.
Faced With Lawyer's Questioning, Judge Xu Bin Is Tongue-tied Again and Again
Judge Xu Bin could no longer dodge them and told the lawyer and her family, “The case has been completed by the collegial bench. ”
Surprised, Ms. Jian's worried family members said, “We have been trying to meet with you for so long, and we were told that you were not in Deyang. How is it that you just returned, but the case is already closed?”
Xu Bin tried to shift the blame to them, “Her lawyer just came ...”
The lawyer told the judge, “You were the one I had to see to examine case files, but you were absent. Then who should I turn to? Now, since the bench has completed the case, please give us the verdict.” Xu Bin was at a loss for words. The lawyer then said, “If there is no verdict, then I request to intervene.”
Xu Bin was once again speechless, and in the end, he asked the lawyer and Ms. Jian's family to wait outside his office. He closed the door and made a phone call to his superior. After quite some time, he told the lawyer and Ms. Jian's family to wait in the lobby.
Xu Bin Refuses to Let Lawyer Intervene with an Excuse that He Doesn't Understand New Procedural Law
When Xu Bin reappeared, his tone eased a bit. He asked the lawyer which firm he was from and his name. He then argued that Ms. Jian's family only demanded an acquittal in their appeal, but did not state the reasons and other issues. After consideration, they had decided not to hold a trial, but studied and heard the case by internal collegial panels.
When Ms. Jian's lawyer asked the judge to present the legal basis for following such a procedure, Xu was once again speechless. The lawyer said, “According to paragraph 2, Article 223 of the Code of Criminal Procedure that took effect January 1 this year, if the second level court decides not to hold a hearing, you should interrogate the defendant and listen to the opinions of other clients, counsels and litigation agents. Judge Xu, did you question Ms. Jian Yicong? ”
Xu Bin tried to justify his failure to question Ms. Jian, saying, “The old procedural law doesn't have such a provision.”
When the lawyer asked him to look through the law once again, Xu Bin, “Stop discussing it.”
The lawyer then challenged him: “Do I understand correctly that you refuse to accept my documents as the agent for this lawsuit?”
Xu Bin said once again, “The bench has closed the case.”
The lawyer said, “Fine,” and told Ms. Jian's family, “Let's go.”
Immediately afterward the lawyer wrote a letter of complaint and submitted it to the Deyang City Procuratorate and officially accused Judge Xu Bin from the Criminal Court of the Deyang City Intermediate Court of violating his right to defend his client.
Deyang City Procuratorate Staff Does Not Understand the Law, Either
When Ms. Jian's family accompanied the lawyer to the Deyang City Procuratorate, a female receptionist looked at the document for quite some time and then said, “The Procuratorate doesn't have such a right.”
The lawyer said, “The new Procedural Law has stipulated that it does.”
The receptionist said that she was still not familiar with this and didn't know which department she should give the document to. She tried to send the lawyer and Ms. Jian's family members away, saying, “Currently there simply is no such department.”
The lawyer said, “If you don't accept it, I have to submit it to the Supreme Procuratorate and will sue all of you.”
The receptionist said, “There is also no such a department at the Supreme Procuratorate.”
The lawyer responded, “Please find your Attorney General.”
The lady made several phone calls and finally a director surnamed Huang arrived. After hearing the lawyer's recount the events, Huang explained that the Procuratorate's rights were limited. He then took the letter of complaint and gave the lawyer the Procuratorate's contact information: +86-838-2502000. The lawyer said, “According to the law, the Procuratorate should produce a written reply in 10 days.”
Ms. Jian's lawyer and family are waiting for the Deyang City Procuratorate's written reply. According to the law, if the Procuratorate breaks the law and refuses to accept the case, the complaint letter can be submitted to higher authorities and can also be published online. We hope that people inside and outside of China will keep track as this case develops.
Brief Account of the Persecution of Ms. Jian Yicong
Ms. Jian Yicong from the Jingyang District of Deyang City was illegally arrested on July 31, 2011, for speaking with people about the persecution of Falun Gong. After being held and tortured for two weeks in the Jingyang District Detention Center, she became totally incontinent. One year later, on August 28, 2012, she was once again arrested and held at the Jingyang District Detention Center. Her family has received no information about her since.
One of Ms. Jian's relatives happened to hear a passersby say that Ms. Jian had been sentenced to three years in prison in late November 2012. They were so shocked that they rushed to the court to demand an explanation. The court never made an announcement, nor did it notify the family. Ms. Jian's family tried very hard to get any information about the purported verdict, but there was no record of the specific trial time on it. Ms. Jian's family appealed and eventually had the case registered on December 14, 2012.
Individuals who have participated in the persecution of Ms. Jian:
Xu Bin: +86-13990203907, +86-838-2595168 (Office)
Please refer to the original Chinese article for more people and offices involved in persecuting Ms. Jian.
