(Minghui.org) On March 14, 2024, the Fuxin City Intermediate Court in Liaoning Province denied a local resident’s motion to reconsider its earlier ruling to uphold a 3.5-year prison sentence against him for practicing Falun Gong. Mr. Li Jian was sent to the Panjin Prison, at the time of this report.
Mr. Li, around 56 and an employee of the Fuxin Branch of China Unicom, was arrested on June 13, 2023 after being reported for placing a Falun Gong flyer on a car. The Fumeng County Court sentenced him on November 13 that year, and the Fuxin City Intermediate Court ruled on December 12, 2023 to reject his appeal without holding a hearing.
Mr. Li’s family proceeded to file a motion with the Fuxin City Intermediate Court on January 15, 2024 to reconsider his case. Judge Zhong Aihua held a hearing on March 5 and issued a ruling to deny the motion on March 14.
Mr. Li’s 85-year-old father, who represented him as a family defender in his trial, appeal, and motion application, vowed to keep seeking justice for him. The elderly man also pointed out how the Fuxin City Intermediate Court failed to correct the trial court’s mistakes and its own wrongful decision to reject the appeal in the first place.
Motion Denial Groundless
In the motion to reconsider the rejected appeal, Mr. Li’s family argued that his act of placing the Falun Gong flyer on that car broke no law, as Announcement 50 issued by the General Administration of Press and Publication on March 1, 2011 revoked the ban on publications of Falun Gong books and materials. Additionally, the cult list issued by the Ministry of Public Security around 2000 never mentioned Falun Gong.
The Fuxin City Intermediate Court, however, insisted that Announcement 50 and the said cult list could not be used as evidence to support Mr. Li’s innocence. Instead, it cited the regime’s 1999 decision to persecute Falun Gong as the legal basis for Mr. Li’s conviction, despite the common practice to use latest laws and regulations in legal cases. His family further argued that the persecution campaign that started in 1999 also had no legal basis, as no law in China has ever criminalized Falun Gong or labeled it a cult.
Appeals Judge Not Aware of Ruling Even Though He Issued the Decision Without Holding a Hearing
Mr. Li’s family also accused the Fuxin City Intermediate Court of failing to address the fallacies in its own earlier decision to reject his appeal.
When Mr. Li’s family went to the Fuxin City Intermediate Court on December 27, 2023 to inquire about his appeals case, judge Li Changjiang (no relation) said he was not involved in it. He then talked to his colleagues and realized that the case already concluded. He found a ruling dated December 12, 2023 with his signature on it. Presiding judge Gu Kunping and judge Li Yuan also signed the appeals ruling.
Mr. Li’s family noted the following line in the ruling, “Upon receiving the case, we formed a collegial bench.” It was apparent that the court never did so as stated in the ruling since judge Li did not even know (or remember) he was part of the case.
The Fuxin City Intermediate Court did not address its own failure to hold an appeals hearing or form a collegial bench in its motion denial notice. Its appeals ruling stated that, “We note that the trial court issued a proper and accurate prison sentence after carefully verifying and cross-examining all evidences.”
Mr. Li’s family refuted that the Fumeng County Court never investigated the police-supplied evidence. As a case in point, the prosecution witness’s name was spelled differently on the indictment paper and the prison sentence notice even though the prosecutors confirmed it was the same person. The judge in charge of the appeals case changed the witness’ name spelling back to the same as that appeared on Mr. Li’s indictment paper. Upon noticing the name changes, Mr. Li’s family notified the Fuxin City Intermediate Court but it did not take it into account in the motion case.
Related Report:
Liaoning Man Gets 3.5 Years for Placing a Falun Gong Flyer on a Car
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