Earlier, the Department of Justice filed an appeal by way of case statement in two cases involving PolyU conflicts. A total of nine defendants were acquitted of the relevant charges.
The Department of Justice then applied ex parte to the Court of Appeal, requesting the court to issue arrest warrants and bring them to court to deal with their bail restrictions.
After the judge of the appeal court heard the submissions in a closed hearing earlier, he issued a judgment today (10th) stating that during the three years from the case to the trial, the lives of several defendants have been greatly affected. They also complied with the bail conditions and believed that there was no need to impose bail conditions on them this time, so the application of the Department of Justice was rejected.
Court of Appeal reiterates that defendants have been acquitted
The judgment also revealed that the prosecution had proposed that if the application was approved, the court could make the verdict public;
However, the Court of Appeal held that these defendants had been acquitted and they could naturally leave Hong Kong. Therefore, no matter what the verdict was, the verdict should be made public.
8 people involved in an illegal assembly at the Science Museum Square in Tsim Sha Tsui
The eight defendants involved in the first appeal case are Luo Xiaofeng, Cai Xilin, Du Junxing, Deng Zijian, Peng Yongqiang, Mai Junyan, Zhou Haohong and Ye Zijie. They were originally accused of illegally gathering in the Science Museum Plaza in Tsim Sha Tsui on November 18, 2019 .
Another female defendant has left Hong Kong
As for the defendant involved in another appeal case, Ou Yuting was originally accused of participating in a riot at the junction of Nathan Road near Waterloo Road in Yau Ma Tei on November 18, 2019.
The judgment revealed that Au had left Hong Kong, and the Department of Justice therefore withdrew the application against her.
The defendants are young and have no criminal record, and they also abide by the conditions of bail
Regarding the case of illegal assembly, the Department of Justice stated earlier that it is hoped that the court will issue an arrest warrant, bring the defendant to court, and then the court will impose bail conditions, including not being allowed to leave Hong Kong.
However, the judge of the Court of Appeal pointed out that the defendants involved in the case were young and had no criminal record. During the three years from the case to the trial, their life was greatly affected.
The Department of Justice also stated that it would ask the court to impose bail conditions, including restricting their freedom for a long period of time. The Court of Appeal finally rejected the application of the Department of Justice.
The judge also pointed out that the current grounds of appeal proposed by the Department of Justice are general.
The Department of Justice filed an appeal without the transcript of the original trial, giving the impression that the application was perfunctory.
Case No.: CACC13, 14/2023
9 acquitted defendants in two major cases are facing appeal The Secretary of State was allowed to appeal the photo deletion case to the Final Court｜Lin Zhuoting and others were exonerated and the Department of Justice appealed the 831 conflict｜Chen Hongxiu, a social worker in the camp, was acquitted.