3 May 2023法庭線#6393
Choy Yuk Ling, Bao Makes Final Appeal Against Conviction over Vehicle Registration Mark Search; Judge Questions DOJ for Continually Narrowing Scope of Applications
港台《鏗鏘集》前編導蔡玉玲，被指為跟進元朗 721 襲擊事件，向運輸署虛報車牌查冊用途，2021 年被裁定兩項作出虛假陳述罪成，罰款 6,000 元。蔡提定罪上訴被高院駁回後，再申終極上訴，終審法院周三（3 日）開庭審理。
蔡一方強調，傳媒作為第四權負責監察社會，蔡玉玲作為新聞工作者調查的內容，涉及「車輛在道路上使用」的用途，查冊目的明顯與「交通及運輸」事宜有關。蔡一方又指，傳媒多年來一直有查冊，涉案調查報亦明確提及記者向署方查冊，可顯示她根本不知其行為違法。律政司反駁指，根據聲明字眼及背景，「交通及運輸事宜」明顯不包括新聞調查報道。法官李義質疑，律政司為求令被告墮入法網，不斷收窄查冊的申請範圍。終院 5 名法官聽畢雙方陳詞，擇日頒下判詞。
蔡玉玲在庭外指，希望法官可以衡量在公眾知情權、新聞自由和個人私隱之間，應如何取平衡；同時釐清在現行法例下，有否賦權政府單方面、一刀切排除新聞工作者使用查車牌所得的資料。被問到若最終敗訴，對新聞界會有何影響，蔡玉玲形容「惡劣情況」早已發生，指她留意到自己被控後，很多媒體機構不再容許記者查車牌。她指若終極敗訴會感到遺憾，「但我本著的立場是，我一直都希望能夠為業界，或為新聞行業做自己可以做的事。」
Former producer-director of RTHK’s “Hong Kong Connection”, Choy Yuk Ling, Bao was accused of falsely stating the purpose of vehicle registration mark searches with the Transport Department in order to follow up on the Yuen Long 7.21 attack. In 2021, Choy Yuk Ling, Bao was convicted of two counts of making false statements and fined HK$6,000. After Choy Yuk Ling, Bao’s appeal against the conviction was dismissed by the High Court, a final appeal was filed. The Court of Final Appeal began hearing the case on Wednesday (the 3rd).
Choy Yuk Ling, Bao’s side stressed that the media, as the fourth estate, is responsible for monitoring society, and that the investigation conducted by Choy Yuk Ling, Bao as a journalist concerned the use of vehicles on roads, making its purpose clearly related to “matters of traffic and transport”. Choy Yuk Ling, Bao’s side also said that the media had conducted such searches for years, and that the investigation report in question explicitly mentioned a reporter making a search with the department, showing that she fundamentally did not know her conduct was unlawful. The Department of Justice argued in response that, based on the wording and background of the declaration, “matters of traffic and transport” clearly did not include news investigations and reporting. Justice Lee Yee questioned whether the Department of Justice was continually narrowing the scope of applications for searches in order to bring the defendant within the law’s reach. The five judges of the Court of Final Appeal heard submissions from both sides and reserved judgment.
Outside court, Choy Yuk Ling, Bao said she hoped the judges would weigh how a balance should be struck between the public’s right to know, press freedom and personal privacy. She also hoped the court would clarify whether, under the existing law, the government is empowered to unilaterally and categorically exclude journalists from using information obtained through vehicle registration mark searches. Asked about the impact on the media if the final appeal were ultimately dismissed, Choy Yuk Ling, Bao said the “adverse situation” had already occurred, noting that after she was prosecuted, many media organisations no longer allowed reporters to search vehicle registration marks. She said she would feel regret if the final appeal were dismissed, “but my position has always been that I hope to do what I can for the profession, or for the news industry.”
27 Apr 2023獨媒#6365
ICAC Charges LCSD Assistant Over Sharing Posts Urging People Not to Vote; Former District Councillor Kwok Tsz-kin Wanted
廉政公署起訴一名任職康文署辦公室助理的48歲女子，被指違反選舉條例。她被控9項控罪，涉嫌將前區議員郭子健煽惑他人在前年立法會選舉足不投票的貼文，分享到多個社交媒體群組。郭子健同涉嫌違反選舉條例，被控13項控罪。廉署指他已離開香港，已向法院申請手令作出通緝。
The Independent Commission Against Corruption has charged a 48-year-old woman employed as an office assistant by the Leisure and Cultural Services Department with violating the Elections Ordinance. She faces nine charges for allegedly sharing posts by former district councillor Kwok Tsz-kin that incited people not to vote in the Legislative Council election held the year before last, in multiple social media groups. Kwok, who is also suspected of violating the Elections Ordinance, faces 13 charges. The ICAC said he had left Hong Kong and had applied to the court for a warrant to have him wanted.
27 Apr 2023法庭線#6368
“Mob justice” taxi driver case: 32-year-old man jailed for 3 years for rioting; DOJ sentence review succeeds, adding 13 months
2019 年 10 月，《禁蒙面法》實施翌日，各區爆發遊行抗議。一輛的士在深水埗剷上行人路，並撞向示威人群，司機其後遭「私了」。32 歲男子被指腳踩司機及用長形硬物毆打事主，承認暴動罪被判監禁 3 年。律政司不滿刑期過輕提出覆核，高院上訴庭早前批准申請，加刑至 4 年 1 個月。
上訴庭周四（27 日）頒下判詞指，雖然沒證據顯示本案涉精密計劃，但在當時背景下，「暴力的爆發是絕對可以預見」。法官指，本案有一定程度的預謀，並非完全偶發，暴力程度非常嚴重，沒導致事主永久傷殘，純屬僥倖。法官續指，原審忽略了本案私自處決不同背景或立場人士，比襲警更嚴重，原審判刑明顯過輕、原則犯錯。
On the day after the anti-mask law took effect in October 2019, demonstrations and protests broke out across the districts. A taxi drove onto a footpath in Sham Shui Po and hit a crowd of protesters, after which the driver was subjected to “mob justice”. A 32-year-old man, accused of stepping on the driver and assaulting him with a long hard object, pleaded guilty to rioting and was sentenced to three years’ imprisonment. The Department of Justice, dissatisfied that the sentence was too lenient, applied for a review. The High Court’s Court of Appeal earlier allowed the application and increased the sentence to four years and one month.
27 Apr 2023法庭線#6370
Man accused of replacing national anthem in Cheung Ka-long gold-medal video with “Glory to Hong Kong” charged with insulting anthem; prosecution says ideological insult, defence says “overstretching”
香港劍擊隊代表張家朗 2021 年奪得奧運金牌，一名 27 歲男子被指將頒獎片段中的國歌，換上《願榮光歸香港》並發布至 YouTube，被控違反《國歌條例》下「侮辱國歌」罪。被告不認罪，是首宗涉侮辱國歌的審訊案件，案件周四（27 日）在東區裁判法院作結案陳詞。
控方指「二次創作」並非抗辯理由，法庭應考慮被告是否刻意替換國歌，及會否構成侮辱。就交替控罪「侮辱區旗」，控方指本案不是物理或實際上「玷污或踐踏」，而是意識形態上作出侮辱。
辯方回應道，控方沒有足夠證據證明被告的動機，而交替控罪條文中未有涵蓋「意識形態」，「係無限上綱嘅說法」，強調立法原意是為讓民眾有規可循，反問意識形態沒有標準下，民眾可如何理解法例。案件訂於 6 月 1 日裁決，期間被告續准保釋。
Hong Kong fencer Cheung Ka-long won an Olympic gold medal in 2021. A 27-year-old man is accused of replacing the national anthem in footage of the medal ceremony with “Glory to Hong Kong” and uploading it to YouTube. He is charged under the National Anthem Ordinance with insulting the national anthem. The defendant pleaded not guilty. The case, the first trial involving an alleged insult to the national anthem, concluded with closing submissions at the Eastern Magistrates’ Court on Thursday (the 27th).
The prosecution said “secondary creation” was not a defence. The court should consider whether the defendant deliberately replaced the national anthem and whether this constituted an insult. On the alternative charge of insulting the regional flag, the prosecution said the case did not involve physically or actually “desecrating or trampling on” the flag, but an ideological insult.
The defence responded that the prosecution had insufficient evidence to prove the defendant’s motive. It said the wording of the alternative charge did not cover “ideology” and that this was “an overstretched argument”. The defence stressed that the legislative intent was to give the public rules to follow, and questioned how people could understand the law when ideology had no standard. The case was adjourned until June 1 for judgment, and the defendant was continued on bail.
27 Apr 2023法庭線#6371
Former district councillor Tsun Yu Lo convicted of misleading police by claiming he was threatened by officers; prosecution’s sentence review rejected
時任民主黨屯門區議員盧俊宇被指 2020 年，在 Facebook 發帖稱他出席元朗 7.21 紀念活動時遭警反手捉緊、恐嚇並帶返警署，事後涉向調查警長訛稱曾發生上述事件，經審訊後被裁定「有意圖而提供虛假資料企圖誤導警員」罪成，被判 240 小時社會服務令。律政司不服判刑過輕提覆核，上訴庭 3 位法官認同原審裁判官判刑原則有錯，明顯過輕，正確量刑可高達監禁 3 個月，但考慮各項因素後，最終拒絕律政司覆核申請。
上訴庭法官彭偉昌、潘敏琦及彭寶琴周四（27 日）頒下裁決理由，批評盧俊宇「一而再、再而三地繼續、或嘗試繼續其連篇的謊話」，悔意欠奉。指他與感化官會面時，仍絕口不提虛構帖文，堅稱是疏失犯案。但法官指，考慮覆核距離案發日已兩年多，盧已完成社會服務令，若要重新服刑，會造成一定程度困境。綜合所有因素後，上訴庭認為即使原審官犯錯，重新判刑並不符合各方利益，故拒絕覆核申請。
Tsun Yu Lo, then a Democratic Party Tuen Mun district councillor, was accused of posting on Facebook in 2020 that, while attending a Yuen Long 7.21 memorial event, he had been grabbed from behind, threatened by police and taken to a police station. He was subsequently accused of falsely telling an investigating sergeant that the events had occurred. Following a trial, he was convicted of “providing false information with intent to mislead police officers” and sentenced to 240 hours of community service. The Department of Justice, dissatisfied that the sentence was too lenient, sought a review. Three Court of Appeal judges agreed that the trial magistrate had erred in the sentencing principles and that the sentence was manifestly inadequate; the correct sentence could have been up to three months’ imprisonment. However, after considering all the circumstances, the court ultimately rejected the Department of Justice’s application for a review.
Court of Appeal judges Pang Wai-cheong, Poon Man-kay and Pang Po-yam handed down their reasons on Thursday (the 27th), criticising Tsun Yu Lo for “continuing, or attempting to continue, his litany of lies again and again” and for showing no remorse. The judges said that, when meeting the probation officer, he still said nothing about the fabricated post and insisted that the offence had resulted from negligence. The court noted, however, that more than two years had passed since the offence and that he had completed the community service order; requiring him to serve a sentence again would cause a degree of hardship. Taking all the circumstances into account, the Court of Appeal held that, even though the trial magistrate had erred, imposing a new sentence would not be in the interests of the parties, and therefore rejected the application for review.
27 Apr 2023明報#6373
LCSD Female Staffer Arrested over Alleged Incitement Not to Vote in 2021 LegCo Election; Former District Councillor Kwok Tsz-kin Wanted
廉政公署昨日（26日）落案起訴一名康文署女職員，涉嫌在2021年立法會選舉期間，將前區議員郭子健煽惑他人在選舉中不投票的貼文，分享至多個社交媒體群組。廉署並獲裁判官簽發手令，通緝已離開香港的郭子健。
The Independent Commission Against Corruption yesterday (26th) laid a charge against a female staff member of the Leisure and Cultural Services Department, alleging that during the 2021 Legislative Council election she shared posts by former district councillor Kwok Tsz-kin inciting others not to vote in the election to multiple social media groups. The ICAC also obtained an arrest warrant from a magistrate for Kwok, who has left Hong Kong.
25 Apr 2023獨媒#6354
Tanya Chan Censured by Barristers’ Disciplinary Tribunal over Occupy Central Case, Ordered to Pay HK$140,000 Costs
身兼大律師的前立法會議員陳淑莊，因2014年佔中事件被裁定「煽惑他人犯公眾妨擾」等罪成，判囚8個月、緩刑兩年。大律師公會紀律審裁組早前處理陳淑莊涉破壞大律師名聲的投訴，她同意投訴及案情，審裁組下令譴責陳淑莊，並將案情詳情在公會網站刊登。另外審裁組下令她支付14萬元訟費。陳淑莊近年已經退出政壇，退出公民黨並於前年移居台灣。
Former Legislative Council member and barrister Tanya Chan was convicted of offences including inciting others to commit public nuisance in connection with the 2014 Occupy Central movement, and was sentenced to eight months’ imprisonment, suspended for two years. The Hong Kong Bar Association’s Disciplinary Tribunal earlier handled a complaint alleging that Chan had damaged the reputation of barristers. She agreed to the complaint and the facts of the case. The tribunal ordered that Chan be censured and that details of the facts be published on the association’s website. It also ordered her to pay HK$140,000 in costs. Chan has left politics in recent years, quit the Civic Party and moved to Taiwan the year before last.
21 Apr 2023法庭線#6343
11.19 Tsim Sha Tsui | Woman in her 40s convicted of rioting jailed for 41 months; leave to appeal conviction refused
2019 年 11 月 19 日，警方圍堵理大，大批巿民聲援被困校內的示威者。5 人在尖沙咀厚福街被捕，被控暴動罪，當中一人於開審前認罪，餘下 4 人早前被裁定罪名成立，被判監禁 37 至 48 個月。
當中一名被裁定罪成的 46 歲女子不服定罪，申請上訴許可，案件周五（21 日）於高等法院處理。上訴庭法官彭寶琴聽畢雙方陳詞，即日拒絕批出上訴許可，認為她提出的理據並無任何合理可辯之處。
On 19 November 2019, police surrounded Polytechnic University, while large numbers of members of the public voiced support for protesters trapped inside the campus. Five people were arrested on Hau Fook Street in Tsim Sha Tsui and charged with rioting. One pleaded guilty before trial, while the remaining four were earlier convicted and sentenced to between 37 and 48 months’ imprisonment.
A 46-year-old woman among those convicted challenged her conviction and applied for leave to appeal. The case was heard at the High Court on Friday (21st). After hearing submissions from both sides, Court of Appeal judge Pang Po-kam refused leave to appeal on the same day, finding that there was no reasonably arguable point in the grounds she raised.
21 Apr 2023獨媒#6344
Aimin (1950) Hu convicted of criminal damage over repeated vandalism of Falun Gong street booths, sentenced to 15 weeks
47歲愛國男胡愛民涉前年先後在黃大仙和旺角，連同另外兩名男子損壞法輪功街站的展板及橫額，被控兩項刑事損壞罪，經早前審訊，今（21日）於九龍城裁判法院被裁定罪成，判監15星期。裁判官梁雅忻指胡愛民雖然只在場拍攝，沒有直接出手破壞，但從手機訊息「明天搞全港法輪功」，可見他對法輪功存在不滿，加上閉路電視片段可見他與另外兩名參與破壞人士為同一伙人，故胡亦被視為「共犯」。梁官斥胡在光天化日、不理有途人經過的情況下進行破壞，完全視法律為無物，「根本係挑戰緊法紀」，必須判處監禁。另一名有份破壞但認罪的男子則被判監9星期。
A 47-year-old pro-establishment man, Aimin (1950) Hu, allegedly damaged display boards and banners at Falun Gong street booths in Wong Tai Sin and Mong Kok on separate occasions two years ago, together with two other men. He was charged with two counts of criminal damage and, following an earlier trial, was convicted and sentenced to 15 weeks’ imprisonment at Kowloon City Magistrates’ Courts today (21st). Magistrate Frances Nga Yan Leung said that although Aimin (1950) Hu had only filmed at the scene and had not directly carried out the damage, a mobile phone message reading “deal with Falun Gong across Hong Kong tomorrow” showed his dissatisfaction with Falun Gong. CCTV footage also showed that he and the other two people involved in the vandalism were part of the same group, and he was therefore regarded as an accomplice. The magistrate rebuked him for carrying out the damage in broad daylight without regard for passing pedestrians, saying he had treated the law as nothing and was “basically challenging the law and order”; imprisonment was therefore necessary. Another man who participated in the damage and pleaded guilty was sentenced to nine weeks’ imprisonment.
20 Apr 2023獨媒#6337
18-year-old pleads guilty to unlawful assembly at CUHK march, sentenced to rehabilitation centre
2020年11月中大舉行網上畢業禮，過百人至校園遊行。警方國安處事後拘捕9人，其中兩名青年原被控「串謀發表煽動文字」罪，及後遭改控非法集結罪。18歲青年早前承認控罪，今（20日）在區域法院判刑。法官王詩麗指被告當日積極參與集結，他站在前線帶領遊行，又使用揚聲器高喊煽動性口號，其他示威者則一同和應，反映他的角色鮮明。但王官考慮其年齡及初犯等因素後，最終接納報告建議，判他入更生中心。
In November 2020, more than 100 people marched to the Chinese University of Hong Kong, which was holding an online graduation ceremony. The Police National Security Department subsequently arrested nine people. Two young men were originally charged with conspiracy to publish seditious publications, but the charges were later amended to unlawful assembly. The 18-year-old pleaded guilty earlier and was sentenced today (20th) at the District Court. Judge Wong Sze Lai said the defendant had actively participated in the assembly, standing at the front to lead the march and using a loudhailer to shout seditious slogans, which other protesters echoed, reflecting his distinct role. However, after considering his age and that he was a first-time offender, Judge Wong accepted the report’s recommendation and sentenced him to a rehabilitation centre.
Translations are supplied by the source workbook. Consult the original reporting for context.
