(Minghui.org) Mr. Li Zhiqiang (李志强) was handcuffed, his legs shackled, and his head covered with a black bag when he appeared in Decheng District Court in Dezhou City on September 19, 2014.
Shortly after the trial began, the court removed his defense attorney, because he entered an innocent plea. Mr. Li's son, who was still in college, took the lawyer's place. The court then decided to expel all other members of his family, with the exception of his wife.
The prosecutor then presented photographs as evidence, which had no apparent connection with the case. The judge refused to allow Mr. Li or his son to speak in his defense.
The prosecutor accused Mr. Li of having Falun Dafa videos on his computer. The judge accepted it as evidence, even though there was no proof, nor does possessing a video about a cultivation practice comprise a crime. The prosecutor pressed for a heavy sentence because Mr. Li “refused to admit his guilt.”
When Mr. Li's son presented evidence about the benefits of practicing Falun Gong, the judge interrupted him repeatedly, and did not allow him to finish his statement. When his son tried to call a witness to testify to how Mr. Li had benefited from Falun Gong, the judge stopped him, claiming that it was not relevant to the case.
Local police went to the witness's home to harass him soon after the trial.
The presiding judge was Liu Yinjiang (刘印江), accompanied by judge Wang Qian (王茜). The prosecutors were Liu Weifeng (刘伟峰) and Zhang Zhongxing (张忠星).
Liu Dawei (刘大伟) and Zhang Xikun (张希坤), officers from the Decheng Police Department Domestic Security Section, deceived Mr. Li and unlawfully detained him in Dezhou City Detention Center on March 13, 2014. Mr. Li's business was shut down, which cut off his family's only source of income.
Mr. Li's wife went to the Domestic Security Office to ask for Mr. Li's release many times. Officers Liu Dawei and Zhang Xikun verbally abused and threatened her, physically assaulted her, and took photos of her.
When Mr. Li's wife and son went to the Domestic Security Office on September 5, 2014, to ask for his release, officer Zhang Xikun called over two dozen officers, who beat the son for half an hour. They handcuffed and interrogated him for four hours.
