Judge Refuses to Meet Falun Gong Practitioner's Lawyer and Upholds Lower Court's Verdict
(Minghui.org) Falun Gong practitioner Mr. Tian Jinxin's recent appeal to the higher court was rejected without a public hearing.
Cao Shijun, a judge from the Shenyang City Intermediate Court, refused to meet with Mr. Tian's lawyer and family, and upheld the lower court's verdict without informing his lawyer on November 3, 2015.
Mr. Tian Jinxin
Arrested for Hiring Defense Lawyers for Falun Gong Practitioners
Mr. Tian and two other practitioners, all from Harbin City, were arrested in May 2014 because they hired defense lawyers for other practitioners in Shenyang City.
Police officers brutally tortured them. Mr. Tian suffered many violent beatings that caused his legs to go numb and be in constant pain.
Tried and Sentenced to Four Years of Prison
On April 16, 2015, Shenhe District Court tried Mr. Tian and the other two practitioners. Five lawyers defended them at the trial, but they left the court in protest before the hearing ended when the judges did not comply with the law.
Mr. Tian was sentenced to four years of prison in July 2015. The other two practitioners were sentenced to one-and-a-half years and three-and-a-half years respectively in prison.
They appealed to the higher court, and their case was transferred to Shenyang City Intermediate Court in August.
Presiding Judge Refuses to Meet With Mr. Tian's Lawyer and Family
The presiding judge, Cao Shijun, who handled Mr. Tian's case, was the judge in charge of all Falun Gong appeal cases at the intermediate court in Shenyang City.
Mr. Tian's defense lawyer resubmitted documents to the court for appeal. His family also submitted documents, including affidavits, a power of attorney, application to appeal, etc. They both received acknowledgments of receipt from the court.
His family called Cao, but he refused to talk to or meet with them.
Mr. Tian's lawyer contacted Cao and requested an interview to discuss his case. Cao said they could meet with him at any time, but when the lawyer said he was coming, Cao said he was out of town.
On October 21, 2015, the lawyer went to the court to meet with Cao, and Cao still said he was out of town on a business trip.
Judge Upholds the Lower Court's Verdict without Notifying the Lawyer
On October 22, the defense lawyer met Mr. Tian at the detention center, and discovered what had happened to him during the past 21 days after they submitted the appeal documents. Cao's assistant, a judge named He, interrogated him on camera. Judge He told him the court had never received his appeal documents or affidavits.
The lawyer then met with Judge He in the afternoon, and told her that Cao had received their documents. The lawyer also gave her materials about the court's illegal action of not holding a public hearing on an appeal.
However, Cao still upheld the lower court's verdict and sentence without notifying Mr. Tian's lawyer.
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A Troubled Young Man Finds Hope in Falun Gong, Communist Regime Tortures Him for His Belief