HKFP
“There are views that the spirit of the rule of law should allow both the prosecution and the defendant to have the means to appeal their case. Therefore the bill has made the city’s criminal law more wholesome,” said justice minister Paul Lam.
Hong Kong’s “patriots-only” legislature has passed a bill which broadens the Department of Justice’s powers to appeal cases, including not-guilty verdicts in national security trials, at the city’s High Court.
The Legislative Council (LegCo) passed the Criminal Procedure (Amendment) Bill 2023 on Wednesday by a show of hands.
The bill, once enacted, will allow the justice department to appeal “no case to answer” decisions in jury trials at the High Court, in which judges have ruled there was not sufficient evidence to justify a trial.
During trials, judges must decide whether there is a “prima facie” case, meaning whether the evidence provided by the prosecution is sufficient for the case against the defendant to proceed. The ruling is usually made before the defence presents their case in court.
The amendment will also allow the DoJ to appeal against not-guilty verdicts in non-jury trials under the Beijing-imposed national security law. To date, no one tried under the national security law has been acquitted of their charges, nor has any case involving the security legislation been tried with a jury.
Under the sweeping security law, Hong Kong’s justice minister has the power to order a non-jury trial in cases handled at the Court of First Instance. Non-jury cases are heard by a panel of three designated national security judges instead.
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Hong Kong passes bill to broaden justice department’s power to appeal cases at the High Court
