(Clearwisdom.net) Jinan City Middle Court and Jinan City Licheng District Court hindered the defense attorneys for practitioners Mr. Zhang Xingwu and Ms. Zhang Yuying.
On May 22, Mr. Li Shubing and Mr. Liu Wei, defense attorneys for practitioner Mr. Zhang Xingwu, scheduled a May 25th appointment for Mr. Zhang's second trial with the Jinan City Middle Court.
On May 25, the two lawyers first went to meet with their client, Mr. Zhang, in the Shandong Province Detention Center, but the center administration rejected their interview request and cited that the Jinan City Middle Court gave them special instructions to block the lawyer-client interview.
The lawyers then went to the Jinan City Middle Court for their appointment. When they brought up what happened in the detention center, the judge denied any involvement and said that their client interview was not the court's business.
The court refused to provide the lawyers with the indictment for the second trial or the court date. When lawyer Liu submitted the paperwork following the procedure, the court clerk rejected it, saying that they did not recognize Liu as Mr. Zhang's defense attorney. Liu insisted on leaving the paperwork.
After the appointment, the lawyers went straight to the detention center and requested an interview with Mr. Zhang Xingwu. The center administration rejected their request again and said that the judge just called and emphasized again that there be no lawyer-client interview.
On April 17, 2009, the Licheng District Court held a secret trial and sentenced Ms. Zhang Yuying to seven years in prison. Neither Ms. Zhang's defense attorney nor her family were informed of the trial. Ms. Zhang's family received the written judgment on April 22, 2009.
On April 24, the defense lawyer requested a meeting with Ms. Zhang in the Jinan Detention Center. However, the center administration rejected his request, citing the Licheng District Court's order.
On May 25, while trying to submit the paperwork at the Jinan City Court, the defense attorney was told by court staff member Gu (given name unknown) that the case was closed. The attorney asked why the case was closed without a second trial. The staff said that Ms. Zhang did not want a defense attorney and the second trial was based on sufficient evidence. Ms. Zhang's family questioned why they were not informed of the trial and demanded to see the documents that showed Ms. Zhang's denial of a defense attorney. Gu rejected the family's demands and replied that the document was not open to family members and they could check with the Procuratorate or other departments.
May 29, 2009
