Social News
Written by: Lin Leer
2021-01-09 20:08
The last update date: 2021-01-09 22:14
The University of Science and Technology student Zhou Zile was found lying on the platform of the Suntech parking lot in November of the previous year. He died 4 days later. There was a conflict between police and civilians in the area that night.
A year after the incident, the Coroner's Court opened an inquest. After the magistrate Gao Weixiong yesterday gave three options for the verdict of unlawful murder, death in an accident, and suspected cause of death, the 5-person jury withdrew from the court for discussion.
However, after about 6 hours of discussion, they still did not reach a conclusion. The jury returned to the West Kowloon Court this morning (9th) to continue the discussion and discussed for nearly 10 hours. The jury of 3 women and 2 men ruled that Zhou's death was in doubt 4:1.
Father Zhou said outside the court that he wanted to tell his son: Our land has done its best and I hope he knows.
Father Zhou said he wanted to tell his son that he had done his best
[8:15 PM] When Zhou's father left the court, he said outside the court that, as the judge said, the result was only "a little difference." He also said that he thanked the jury very much. He was really serious and did not care about the time. Speak to his son: "I'm doing my best, I hope he knows." He said that the jury was so serious that its verdict should be respected, and now he has to take a break and consider it.
He also said that in the past two months, he had only tried to find witnesses and discussed with lawyers, but he was actually tired.
But he said, now I really need to take a break.
He also revealed that he would visit Zile from time to time, and he and his wife have always supported each other. He is very grateful for the help and support of the lawyer team.
When Zhou's mother stepped out of the court, she bowed and said, "I just want to say one thing: hard work for everyone. Hard work."
The jury suggested adding railings to the stone wall on the third floor of the parking lot
[7:45 PM] The jury ruled that Zhou Zile died at the Queen Elizabeth Hospital on November 8, 2019. The injury that caused the death was a head injury, and the injury was caused by a fall from a height in Suntech Parking Lot A on the 4th of the same month.
A five-person jury ruled that Zhou's death was in doubt.
Zhou's parents were calm after hearing the sentence.
The jury recommended to the management company (Welcome Holdings Co., Ltd.) that manages the parking lot that caused the accident to update the closed-circuit television system to make real-time settings to avoid blind spots; and to install railings on the stone wall on the third floor for warnings and instructions.
The official described the inquiry as almost close to the truth
Magistrate Gao Weixiong said that Zi Le is young and promising, and the court is very sad to deal with such cases.
He described the inquiry as "not much closer to the truth." If the angle of the camera is a little higher, or the falling time is a few seconds slower, the truth may be revealed.
He hoped that Zi Le’s parents would slowly recover, and said that "the most important thing is to support each other." If parents feel unhappy or sad, "remember to talk to each other" and "don't bury yourself."
HKUST responded that although the doubt has not been cleared, there is more evidence
The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology responded that it has been concerned about the hearing of the cause of death of classmate Zhou, and has also sent staff to the coroner's court to listen to it.
Although the hearing unfortunately failed to clarify all the doubts about the cause of Zhou's death, because of this open and transparent judicial process, more evidence was discovered, allowing the public to have a better understanding of the incident that day.
The death of classmate Zhou was a tragedy.
Since the incident, HKUST has contacted Zhou's family from time to time to take care of their situation and needs, and provide appropriate assistance.
The university will uphold the humanistic spirit and continue to support the family.
+4
+4
+4
[6:00 pm] The magistrate opened a court to ask whether a verdict could be reached in a short time. The jury responded: "Our discussion has come to an end." Nearly 6 o'clock in the court hall, some lights were turned off.
Court staff indicated that they would contact the Electrical and Mechanical Services Department to turn on the lights.
The jury stated that it is now discussing the verdict
[5:00 pm] Regarding the jury question, the magistrate opened the court and added that when Zhou's father gave his testimony, he said that the main area where he walked through the parking lot was the part connected to the Fukang Garden on the second floor. He seldom walked in other areas and did not know the second floor. The lower floor of the building is hollow above the location of the accident.
The jury stated that it is now discussing the verdict.
The jury asked about the parking lot hollow
[3:00 pm] The jury asked two questions: Has any citizen witness mentioned that he knew or did not know that the third floor of Shibo was hollow; Dr. Zheng Yuqi, a senior government chemist, pointed to the location of Zile’s fallen ground and the horizontal position of Shibo The distance is 1.3 meters. He measured the distance to Shibo by which part of Zi Le.
The magistrate responded that Cui Jialang, the "white hat man", once said that he had lived in the district for a long time, so he knew that the third floor was hollow, and other witnesses did not say whether he knew it or not.
In addition, Dr. Cheng has seen the public witness Meng Weijie took two photos of Zi Le lying on the ground to make an estimation, and he has taken the distance to the scene to measure the distance, but he did not specify which part of the body is to be calculated. The jurors can also pay attention to the relevant photos.
The magistrate learned that the jury wanted to look through five videos that totaled about 30 minutes, and asked about the current progress of the discussion and whether it is expected to reach a verdict today?
The jury said that it was unknown whether it could make a verdict today, but revealed that it is currently lingering among expert witnesses and conclusions.
The magistrate reminded that if no unanimous conclusion is reached, the court will also accept a large number of rulings.
He also said, "I don't want to pressure you (jury)", but said that the law states that the Coroner's Court will not be held on Sunday. If there is no verdict today, it will be adjourned until next Monday.
If the jury feels that it can reach a conclusion after a few hours of deliberations today, the court can also wait.
The cause of Zhou Zile's death | The police took all the film, no accident, the lawyer awakened the officer with a word
The cause of Zhou Zile's death | The mystery of 8 seconds falling without image, expert doctor infers the cause based on environmental evidence
The cause of Zhou Zile's death | Zhou's father said that he most wanted to tell his son that he had tried his best to hope that the truth would emerge in his lifetime
Zhou Zile's cause of death
The hearing now enters the 29th day
The deceased Zhou Zile (22 years old) was found lying on the low-level platform on the second floor of Suntech Parking Lot A at about 1 am on November 4, 2019, and died on the 8th of the same month.
In addition to family members, the Director of Police and the Director of Fire Services were also listed as interested parties during the inquiry.
In the past few weeks, the jury has heard 48 witnesses and examined 142 exhibits.
They withdrew from the court at 10 o'clock yesterday morning for discussion, but they did not reach a ruling until about 5:30 pm. They were arranged to stay overnight in the high court lounge. They returned to the West Kowloon Court today to continue their inquest on the 29th.
An expert witness pointed out that the camera shot Zhou Xing on the third floor, and 8 seconds later, there was a flash of falling on the second floor. In another segment, a dark shadow fell at a similar time. It is speculated that Zhou may not know the back of the third floor Shibo Hollow, crossed the stone bog on its own and fell off the building.
Suntech parking lot situation and the situation captured by CCTV that day. (See the picture below for details)
+11
+11
+11
The family lawyer emphasized that the 8 seconds were captured without a camera
At the stage of closing the case earlier, the barrister representing the family emphasized what happened within the 8 seconds without the camera, and there is no direct evidence that Zile had crossed the rock and fell accidentally.
The prosecution stated that the expert witnesses are subject to the information received, including the video provided by the police and the background of the case, to make inferences; the jury is urged to carefully consider whether they are satisfied with the relevant opinions. If there is a problem with the source of the evidence, they can choose not to believe it.
The police emphasized no interference or hindrance to rescue
The barrister representing the police emphasized that the police did not interfere with or obstructed the rescue, nor did they neglect their duties, describing the criticism of the police as "pale and weak."
Regarding the ambulancemen’s failure to reach the parking lot due to traffic jams, he instructed the threats not to give way. He also pointed out that the property management staff of nearby housing estates allowed private cars to park in front of the fire gate and that the relevant property management company was the "culprit who delayed rescue. The culprit".
The witness confessed the incident. (See the picture below for details)
+30
+30
+30
The magistrate said there are 3 options to consider
The magistrate provided the jury with three verdict options: unlawful murder, accidental death, and suspected cause of death.
He pointed out that when jurors consider the illegal killing, they must use the "unreasonable doubt" standard measurement, that is, the jury must confirm that the illegal killing of Zi Le is the only reasonable inference before making this verdict.
No trace of the attack on the body
He quoted the testimony, saying that there were no traces of assault on his body. The only possible situation was that Zhou’s head was fixed and he was hit on the right head with a flat part of a hard object and then thrown out of the third floor. The location of the head injury happened to overlap with the attack location.
He also mentioned that there was no blood stains on the third floor and that some CCTV cameras would rotate, asking the jury to consider whether the assailant could plan to avoid the CCTV crime and clear the evidence immediately.
If Xin Zhou himself stepped out of Shi Beng, he should be ruled to have died in an accident
As for his death in an accident, the magistrate explained that if he believes that Zhou had walked up to the third floor by himself and fell off the platform when he stepped out of Shibeng, he should rule that the cause of death was an accident; the jury need not think about Zhou’s method and In what position to fall.
This option only needs to be measured by the standard of "relative probability", which means that the jury can make this verdict if it believes that the accidental death is more likely than other reasons.
Suspecting the cause of death is a conclusion that cannot be resolved
The magistrate continued that if the evidence is not sufficient to judge the death, the cause of death should be ruled in doubt.
If the jury believes that Zi Le fell from the third floor to the lower platform on the second floor, but it is not clear why he fell, he should also rule in doubt.
The magistrate described this as an undesirable result, but a "conclusion in no way."
Insufficient investigation and non-recommended range
In addition to determining the cause of death, the jury can also make recommendations.
The magistrate added that the investigation of the case is a matter after the incident, even if the investigation is insufficient, this issue is not within the scope of the jury's recommendation.
In addition, there is no evidence that someone was seriously unwell due to tear gas at the location of the incident during the incident, and the jury did not need to make recommendations on the use of force by the police.
Regarding the ambulance being blocked by illegally parked vehicles when it reached the Guangyingge fire gate, the magistrate said that it was not known whether it was a private or public road. If the jury had to make recommendations to the relevant management agency, the court would have difficulty knowing it. Where to forward the suggestion.
Case number: CCDI-932/2019(DK)
Zhou Zile's cause of death | The official considers that he died from a murder, an accident, or the jury has no verdict on the first day of doubt
Cause of Zhou Zile's death | Magistrate points to evidence that Zhou Busi was pushed off the building
The cause of Zhou Zile’s death|Lawyer emphasized that the police did not interfere with rescue or neglected their duty and said that the voice of the police was unjustified
Zhou Zile’s cause of death|The lawyer for the family’s representative emphasizes: Nothing was captured 8 seconds before the accident
01News
Zhou Zile Fugitives from the Court of Death, the relevant court hearings, I am home
