Feb 09 2010
chongqing defense lawyer gets 1 1/2 years in prison
Well, looks like Li Zhuang got 1 and 1/2 years after his appeal. (see my original post about defense lawyer tactics here) I suppose that’s better than 2 and 1/2 years, but I am still left wondering why in the world he even got a prison sentence. (again, see my original post)
An article from the
Washington Post summarizes:
The Chongqing Municipality No. 1 Intermediate People’s Court upheld Li’s conviction but reduced his original sentence by one year because he repeatedly admitted to the charges against him during the latest trial, the court said on its Web site, without referring to any kind of plea bargain.
So what were the shenanigans this time that made it worth posting about?
But the Beijing Evening News reported that Li Zhuang yelled out in the court after the punishment was announced that he only confessed during the appeal after a “relevant official” told him that doing so would get him a suspended sentence.
Li apparently believed he had struck a deal with prosecutors ahead of the sentencing, the Beijing Evening News reported. He spoke out angrily, saying “I didn’t confess, the confession during this appeal was fake,” the paper reported, citing his lawyer Gao Zicheng.
“Li Zhuang yelled in the court, ‘Before the trial started, a relevant official promised that as long as I confessed, they would give me a suspended sentence’,” Gao was quoted as saying.
A standard defense lawyer tactic, the plea bargain, apparently doesn’t work in China either. Why? Because you have to have an honest prosecution to make it happen. Obviously, that wasn’t the case here. You know its a bad sign the prosecution is a conniving slime ball, and not the defense lawyer. (caveat: I don’t believe all defense lawyers are slime balls, I’m just having fun with imagery here) At the same time, I’m not all that surprised that various players in China’s justice system play fast and loose with their words (i.e., the truth), though it makes me think that some of the various reports of substantial progress for the Chinese justice system are a tad overplayed. (and yes, I do believe that it is making progress)
I’m not sure whether to laugh or cry about all of this frankly.
