Seven More Acquitted of Rioting

Protesters set spectator stands on fire in Wan Chai last year

 

Seven people were acquitted of rioting during an anti-government protest on August 31 last year because the prosecution did not have enough evidence to prove without a reasonable doubt.

District Judge Sham Siu-man concluded on Saturday there was no evidence showing what the defendants did before their arrests in Wan Chai, and ruled their presence alone was not enough to justify a conviction, even if they were dressed in black and equipped with protective gear.

A boyfriend and girlfriend acquitted of rioting

"Undoubtedly, the situation of the night in question was not something that one would often see in Hong Kong," Sham said. "To some people, it was perhaps a rare and special historical moment. The court does not rule out the possibility that, among those present, there were indeed some who went there hoping to witness everything that was happening."

The judge also sided with the defence in ruling there could be innocent reasons for some of the defendants to try to flee from the scene, as they may have left due to police warnings, a spontaneous reaction to swarms of people, or "out of fear of the police" at the time.

"Their being participants of the riot is not the only reasonable inference," Sham concluded. "The court is of the view that the prosecution has failed to prove the offences beyond reasonable doubt and therefore the court finds all the defendants not guilty."

Police responded with tear gas and water cannon

As soon as the judge announced the acquittals, a round of applause erupted in the courtroom. Supporters outside the courtroom thanked the lawyers and chanted, "There are no rioters."

 On August 31, 2019, there were violent clashes between protesters and police at the intersection of Hennessy Road and Luard Road. Protesters hurled Molotov cocktails at police and set up roadblocks. They even dragged benches from the spectator stands at Southern Playground to the middle of the street and set them on fire.

Police responded with tear gas and water cannon, arresting 142 people that day.

In late September the same court dismissed a charge of rioting against a social worker, Jackie Chen Hung-sau who was also there that night in Wan Chai. She had been accused of rioting when in fact Chen was trying to calm the police down.

Jackie Chen was also acquitted in September

So far the number of acquittals in riot charges is 11. Only one protester to date has been convicted of rioting.

As of October 15, more than 10,100 people have been arrested in relation to the anti-government protests, with 2,285 charged, of which 691 were accused of rioting.

Now that another seven defendants have been acquitted, the Department of Justice should look at its scorecard and see it's not doing that well in terms of convictions. If their evidence is not solid, why are prosecutors wasting everyone's time (and taxpayer dollars) in pushing these cases through the judicial system, only to have them dismissed?

But perhaps these rulings are good -- they are for the record and proof the judiciary, which is under a lot of pressure, is still holding up the rule of law.