The trial of Kato Masakazu's case finally went to court. Just after the opening statements, Cheng Lingyu and Shan Jingfan started a fierce confrontation. In particular, the prosecution provided the testimony of the surviving boy, but used the psychologist's report to oppose Shan Jingfan's summons of the boy as a witness. Finally, the presiding judge Feng Xuefan ruled that the evidence was invalid unless the boy could actually appear in court and tell the jury what happened in person.
In the afternoon, the two sides engaged in a heated argument over whether the photo of Kato Masakazu killing someone was forged. Shan Jingfan produced the forged photo of Cheng Lingyu committing the crime and Jin Zhengyi's blackmail letter. The jury was in an uproar. There was no doubt that the credibility of the key evidence had been shaken by Shan Jingfan.
Then, a shocking news suddenly came from outside the court. Shan Jingfan requested a recess, and Feng Guan immediately agreed.
It turned out that it was a servant who had been reported missing by Kato Masakazu a few months ago. He was arrested by the police when he attempted to molest a boy. However, the police found out that when he was a servant in Kato Masakazu's house, he had tricked several children into sneaking them into the basement he usually cleaned, where he killed the boys. He then cut their bodies into pieces, put them in garbage bags and threw them into the garbage dump in batches. Now, the garbage should have been incinerated.
But when he saw the murder case exposed, he was so scared that he ran away.
After signing the confession, the servant had a heart attack and died.
Upon hearing the news, Shan Jingfan immediately submitted a new motion to the court in written form, arguing that there were too many suspicious points in the case and that it was not enough to prove that his client was the murderer. It was very likely that the servant and Jin Zhengyi had colluded to frame his client, and that, based on the servant's confession, the real murderer had already been identified. He asked the court to immediately suspend the case and rule that his client was not guilty.
…
In the "conference room" of Jinshun Hotel, under the wobbly tile lamp, Cheng Lingyu's face looked even more gloomy.
The prosecutors and police officers sitting around the long table also had heavy expressions on their faces, and no one dared to speak.
I can only say that Shan Jingfan is too strong and he laid the chess pieces several months ago.
If the servant ran away after the prosecution discovered the bloodstain, there is no doubt that it would not be convincing enough to the jury.
But he escaped a few months ago, and Kato even called the police, so there are records to check.
Naturally, these were chess pieces that Shan Jingfan had laid out long ago, ready for emergency use according to the development of the case. Now, they came in handy.
What's even more outrageous is that the servant died of a heart attack after he confessed. In fact, it was just a nice way of putting it. The police tortured him a little during the interrogation. The forensic examination showed that he had taken cardiac glycosides beforehand, which were drugs to maintain oxygen supply to the heart. As a result, he had a heart attack after being beaten.
Of course, the final autopsy report showed that the other party died of a sudden heart attack.
This is really a well calculated plan. They can't even say that the person took poison beforehand, and the police have to try their best to cover up the real cause of death.
In this way, there is no way to question the servant's confession.
In fact, the Japanese servant may be involved in a very high-profile case. How severe a punishment can the police impose? It is said that they just punched him a few times and slapped him a few times out of habit. The main reason is that the posture of the torture was too torturous, but it would not be a problem for a normal physique. But the other party was not normal, so this kind of thing happened.
Every prosecutor felt a chill as he carefully pondered the mystery here.
The opponent was so terrible. It seemed that he had calculated everything, including the inhumane corporal punishment that the police would impose on him.
Then, it was used.
What else can I say
All I can say is that a great lawyer is a great lawyer. There is no false reputation behind his reputation. He is worthy of being the ceiling of the legal profession.
Even if we lose, it's just because we are not as skilled as our opponents, there's nothing we can say.
For a moment, everyone was a little frustrated, feeling that the opponent was too strong and difficult to overcome.
Many prosecutors feel powerless.
"They are all tricks, boring..."
Everyone was stunned. Looking over, they saw that the person who spoke was the youngest second-level lawyer, Attorney Lu, who was shaking his head in boredom.
Lu Ming indeed found it quite boring. As a famous lawyer, a real top figure in the legal profession, it turned out that all he did was a series of tricks. He looked very powerful and meticulous, but this kind of opponent made people lose the desire to fight.
Everyone felt helpless and thought that only you could do that, no one else would dare to speak like that.
Wang Xiaohu echoed loudly, "That's right, Japanese devil, you are right, you only know how to play tricks behind the scenes!"
Cheng Lingyu frowned: "Xiaohu, please be careful about your identity when you speak!" As a prosecutor, he couldn't say whatever people said. He looked at Lu Ming and smiled: "Lawyer Lu is right. Shanjing Fan and other things are just tricks."
It seems that his mood has been adjusted, and he also feels that morale is low now, and Lu Ming's words can boost morale a little.
Lu Ming picked up the teacup and took a sip. "Prosecutor Cheng, I feel the servant's confession can be used as hearsay evidence."
Hou Dexing rolled his eyes immediately, but now he didn't dare to speak easily. This Lu guy was very eloquent, but in the end he would embarrass himself. It was not worth it.
Hearsay evidence, generally speaking, is when a witness relays other people's words as evidence, or when a witness only uses written testimony and does not testify in court.
For example, the testimony of the surviving children on the other side was invalidated by Shan Jingfan on the grounds of hearsay evidence.
But the servant was an adult and had signed a confession in accordance with legal procedures. Even if he died accidentally, his testimony would be considered acceptable for presentation in most courts according to current legal standards. However, how credible it is would require a jury to determine, and it is unlikely that it would be directly rejected and declared invalid.
Cheng Lingyu frowned slightly: "Isn't this difficult?"
Lu Ming said: "In fact, it is not impossible. For example, there was a case in my hometown. An old lady had a harsh personality and often attributed many of the troubles in her life to her son. She complained to her neighbors. Later, she fell down and hit the back of her head. When she woke up, she complained to the doctor, saying that her son pushed her off the stool and caused her to fall. The doctor called the police, but the old lady died soon after."
"Then, considering the old lady's usual personality, when she said these words, she did not realize that she was going to die soon, and she was still complaining about her son about everything as usual. In the absence of other strong evidence, the court ruled that her dying words were hearsay evidence."
"If, I mean if, Kato Shoichi, the male servant, has a habit of bragging, or if he was stimulated by something, but he didn't know that he would die immediately after giving a confession, then his confession may not be considered hearsay evidence."
Cheng Lingyu's eyes lit up when he heard this, but he also found it incredible. "Which court is it in your hometown? Is there such a precedent?"
Lu Ming was actually talking about a case from his previous life. He smiled and said, "Prosecutor Cheng, I'll treat you to a meal. Let's discuss how to turn the Shanjing Rice into hearsay evidence."
"Okay, okay!" Cheng Lingyu waved to everyone, "Disperse!"
The prosecutors and police officers immediately stood up and left as if they had been pardoned.
Cheng Lingyu smiled at Lu Ming and said, "There is no one else. Tell me what you can do to get rid of this rumor evidence."
Lu Ming smiled. It seemed that he couldn't hide it from him. In fact, based on his understanding of himself, if they were really just having a meal to discuss the case, he would not be stingy and would naturally treat everyone.
It was obvious that it was his own strategy that he didn't want people present to hear.
He once had a spy in Shan Jingfan, so he naturally understood that the prosecutors and police officers here might not fail to tip off the Japanese.
After all, this Shan Jing Fan loves to come up with new tricks.
"Inspector Cheng, even if we succeed in using hearsay evidence, we are still at a great disadvantage. I have some other ideas that I would like to discuss with you..."
Lu Ming's voice became lower and lower.
Even through the crack in the door, it became harder to hear clearly.
All one could hear was that after a long time, Cheng Lingyu suddenly laughed happily.