(Minghui.org) Falun Gong practitioner Mr. Xia Yuanxin, in his 60s, from Dalian, is appealing his seven-year illegal sentence handed down by the Jinzhou District Court of Dalian.
Mr. Xia was arrested last August and tried in February, but his family was not informed of his sentence until this May.
Family Visits Forbidden
Mr. Xia Yuanxin was arrested at home on August 24, 2013, by officers from the Guangming Police Station in the Jinzhou District and held in the Jinzhou District Detention Center. His family was not allowed to visit him.
When the Jinzhou District Court tried Mr. Xia on February 25, 2014, the police would not let his family observe the trial.
His family was not informed until May 23, 2014, that he had been sentenced to seven years in prison.
Judge Acted as Prosecutor
According to Mr. Xia’s lawyer, judge Wang Zhongwei treated him and his client in an unprofessional manner. Mr. Xia was not allowed to speak on his own behalf, and the judge kept interrupting his lawyer. The judge himself acted as the prosecutor and argued with Mr. Xia’s lawyer, who entered a not-guilty plea on behalf of his client.
The prosecutor provided only copies of “evidence” – no original documents – during the trial. The photos were blurred. Mr. Xia’s lawyer asked for the original documents and asked that the witnesses testify. The judge denied his requests.
One "key" piece of written evidence used to charge Mr. Xia was obtained when police officers interrogated Mr. Xia’s wife and daughter. Mr. Xia stated that the evidence was fabricated and not what his wife and daughter had said. He asked that his wife and daughter testify in person, but the judge accepted the written evidence and refused to allow Mr. Xia’s wife or daughter to testify.
The trial was advertised as open to the public, but no one was allowed to attend except for the court staff. Police officers stood at the entrance during the whole trial.
Mr. Xia's lawyer has appealed to a higher court for a retrial.
