Not to mention that the three men could not accept the result of the death penalty, even the restaurant guests who hated them so much were stunned. In the eyes of normal people, even if such people were buying and selling the meat of sick people, since there were no deaths, they would generally not be sentenced to death, and at most they would be exiled for twenty years.
Because Ning'an County has become a pilot area for the Criminal Court, officials from the Criminal Court stationed in Ning'an will take turns to observe Fang Yun's trial.
I saw an old Hanlin from the Criminal Hall squeeze out of the crowd, walk to the main hall door, stand outside the threshold, bow, and say: "Fang Xusheng, is this sentence too heavy?"
Fang Yun remained calm as he looked at the Hanlin and said, "The death penalty has two prerequisites. One is that it can only be used for criminals who have committed extremely serious crimes. The other is that it can only be used for specific crimes. Acts such as theft and fighting will not be sentenced to death. Does Hanlin Lu have any objections?"
"Indeed, the death penalty does have these two conditions." Lu Hanlin said. He was not trying to stop Fang Yun. On the contrary, he stood up at this moment to help Fang Yun. If Fang Yun could not give a sufficiently reasonable reason, then Fang Yun would change the sentence immediately and there would be no negative impact. If Fang Yun had enough reasons, then he could convince more people and make them understand the verdict better.
Fang Yun said, "Well, let's talk about the first condition first. If I had been half an hour late today, those three people would have died, and the others would have been seriously ill and difficult to cure. And the meat of the dead bodies they sold affected countless people. I'm afraid some people would have become weaker after eating the meat of the dead bodies, and would have died prematurely instead of dying. Moreover, the plague that broke out this time was a demon plague. With all these factors, can it be considered an extremely serious crime?"
"What Fang Xusheng said is true."
Lu Hanlin nodded along with the others. In terms of the severity of the crime, this was worse than murder.
Fang Yun said, "Then, let's talk about the second condition. For the crime of poisoning, as long as no one is killed, there will be no death penalty. But is the death penalty applicable to poisoning in a public place with so many people?"
"Although the laws of different countries are different. But if poisoning is done in a crowded place, even if no one is killed, the death penalty will apply. However, highly toxic poisons have the ability to absolutely kill, while diseased meat does not have that ability to absolutely kill, so they cannot be confused." Lu Hanlin said.
Although the patients' families also wanted the three people to die, most of them listened carefully and felt that what Lu Hanlin said made sense. After all, he was a Hanlin from the Criminal Hall, but they could not agree with his feelings.
Fang Yun said, "Due to the backwardness of the human legal system, some cases do not have accurate charges and require review by the Three Law Departments or the Criminal Court. This county is a pilot and does not need to be reviewed by the Three Law Departments. Unless the Criminal Court objects, it can be improved to a certain extent according to the law. In the law, there are no charges such as trafficking in plague or making plague. Is what this county said correct?"
"That's right, the laws of the human race have some flaws." Lu Hanlin said.
Fang Yun continued, "Since there is no crime related to the plague, then the county should cite a similar crime and replace the plague with poison."
Lu Hanlin said: "These plagues are indeed no less poisonous than those of the deadly kind, but in fact, they only regard the plague as a poison that is not very toxic. It can be said to be a serious laxative, not arsenic. They are not intended to kill people intentionally, of course, but in fact, they have caused serious consequences."
Fang Yun said: "What Lu Hanlin said is very true. Let's give an example. If someone only wanted to give someone a laxative, but accidentally took arsenic and poisoned someone, how would he be punished?"
"It should be considered manslaughter. The sentence ranges from five to twenty years of exile. It will not be a capital crime."
“But if a person accidentally takes arsenic and poisons many people, and it involves public safety issues, how should the punishment be?”
"Because the circumstances are so serious, the death penalty should be imposed."
Fang Yun said, "Given that these people have been trafficking and spreading the plague for a long time and on a large scale, and have almost caused the deaths of many people, even though they attempted murder, they should be sentenced severely. I wonder if Lu Hanlin has any objections?"
Lu Hanlin did not speak. He pondered for a moment and said, "How about Fang Xusheng get rid of the concept of 'poisoning crime' and judge a completely new crime, and then let the Holy Court approve it?"
Fang Yun thought for a moment and said, "Well, I will change the charge. Since poison and plague are both dangerous things, it is better to change the charge from poisoning to 'the crime of placing dangerous things'. However, in order to distinguish this crime from murder and other crimes, a limiting condition must be added, that is, endangering public safety. If the poisoning only involves one person, it is intentional homicide. If it happens in a public place or over a large area, endangering public safety, it is 'the crime of placing dangerous things'."
Lu Hanlin was stunned. He lowered his head and thought for a moment, then suddenly raised his head and said, "Fang Xusheng is a great talent, and I am not as good as him! This charge is extremely appropriate and cannot be changed in any way. The Criminal Court cannot refuse it! Fang Xusheng should be a pillar of the Legalist School!"
When everyone saw that even the Hanlin of the Criminal Hall admired Fang Yun very much, they felt relieved.
"You're too polite, Mr. Lu." Fang Yun said modestly. This was actually a very common crime in later generations, accumulated from the wisdom of countless judicial elites.
Therefore, Fang used the new charge to pronounce the verdict, and then wrote it down in a document himself and sent it to the Criminal Court. As long as the Criminal Court approved the charge, not only could the three be sentenced to death, but more extensions could be made around the crime of "releasing dangerous objects". Perhaps next month there would be an article related to this charge published in "The Holy Way".
After finishing naming the new crime, Fang Yun felt that his Legalist code had become a little thicker and had a heavier aura.
At this time, Yu Dianshi appeared at the side door of the lobby, knocked gently on the door frame, and signaled Fang Yun.
When Fang Yun saw that the three people were still unconscious, he asked Yu Dianshi to come over.
Yu Dianshi came over quickly with a thick stack of files in his hands, put the files on Fang Yun's desk with both hands, and then whispered: "Sir, the case of Gouzi and Jian Yayi has been preliminarily examined. Jian Yayi's situation is serious and may implicate some people. Gouzi has a lot of problems as well, but they are nothing more than bullying and fighting. This time, in addition to Gouzi and his three accomplices, all the ruffians related to Gouzi were arrested, a total of more than 30 people. Among them, four people have particularly serious problems and may be involved in several murders many years ago. One of the cases..."
Yu Dianshi suddenly stopped.
Fang Yun knew there was something wrong, so he nodded and carefully looked through the case files. He soon saw the confessions of some thugs. In order to reduce their sentences, they confessed that the four men had killed a workshop worker.
As soon as Fang Yun saw the name of the workshop worker, a case that Ji Zhibai had tried last year immediately emerged in his mind!
In the case judged by Ji Zhibai, the murderer who killed the workshop worker had been arrested and brought to justice. He was a worker in the same workshop and was exiled to the army for twenty years.
(To be continued…)