28 Jul 2023法庭線#8093
11.18 Yau Ma Tei | Six plead guilty to riot before trial and are sentenced to 41 to 45 months in prison; judge: impact on defendants’ prospects is self-inflicted
警方在 2019 年 11 月圍封理大校園，213 人涉在油麻地「圍魏救趙」，被控暴動。本案 8 名被告，其中 6 人在開審前認罪，法官謝沈智慧周五（28 日）於區域法院判 6 人監禁 41 至 45 個月。
法官形容，示威者猶如熟練軍隊推進，是次暴動並非突然發生，早有預謀，行為肆無忌憚、目無法紀。而暴動令商店未能營業，對居民構成滋擾，多項公共設施受損，造成的公共開支難以估計。而被告面對嚴重罪行，個人或家庭背景可謂微不足道，即使個人前途受影響亦屬咎由自取。
Police cordoned off the Polytechnic University campus in November 2019. A total of 213 people were accused of being involved in “besieging Wei to save Zhao” in Yau Ma Tei and were charged with rioting. Of the eight defendants in this case, six pleaded guilty before trial. Judge Adriana Noelle Tse Ching sentenced the six to 41 to 45 months’ imprisonment at the District Court on Friday (the 28th).
28 Jul 2023法庭線#8095
Former Apple Daily senior editor files claim for HK$174,000 in unpaid wages
一名前《蘋果日報》高級編輯入稟申索工資、年假、年終酬金等逾 17.4 萬元，案件周五（ 28 日）在勞資審裁處提訊，公司代表缺席，法庭為申索人進行單方面聆訊。
審裁官李慧雲指，本年初已有執達吏將文件送達公司註冊地址，沒有文件被退回，亦確認審裁處及申索方均沒有從《蘋果》收到答辯書及相關資料。
審裁官裁決時指，接納申索方已提交能確立案情的證明文件，而《蘋果》未有按糧單及相關文件上的金額繳付予申索人。法庭將頒下命令，要求《蘋果》向申訴人繳付相關金額，除非《蘋果》有代表申請有關命令作廢。
A former senior editor of Apple Daily filed a claim for more than HK$174,000 in wages, annual leave pay and year-end remuneration. The case was heard at the Labour Tribunal on Friday (28th). The company’s representative was absent, and the tribunal held an ex parte hearing for the claimant.
Adjudicator Vivian Wai Wan Lee said bailiffs had served the documents at the company’s registered address earlier this year, with none returned. The adjudicator also confirmed that neither the tribunal nor the claimant had received a defence or related materials from Apple Daily.
In the ruling, the adjudicator said the claimant had submitted documentary evidence sufficient to establish the case, while Apple Daily had not paid the claimant the amounts stated on the payslips and related documents. The tribunal will issue an order requiring Apple Daily to pay the relevant amount, unless Apple Daily’s representative applies to have the order set aside.
28 Jul 2023法庭線#8097
5.24 Causeway Bay | Zhihong (1967) Li’s appeal against disorderly conduct conviction dismissed, sentence reduced to 5 months; immediate imprisonment
2020 年 5 月 24 日，灣仔、銅鑼灣「反國歌法、國安法」遊行，時任沙田區議會主席李志宏被指誣警推跌他及以粗言辱罵警員，受審後被裁定一項「在公眾地方擾亂秩序」罪成，判監 7 個月。
李不服定罪及刑罰上訴，高院法官張慧玲周五（28 日）駁回李定罪上訴，維持罪成裁決，但刑罰上訴得直，改囚 5 個月。李須即時服刑。
高院判詞指，原審已充分考慮所有情況及李的言行，裁定他在公眾地方作出喧嘩或擾亂秩序的行為，又有意圖激使破壞社會安寧，裁決「完全合情合理」。就刑罰上訴方面，法官認為原審 8 個月量刑起點明顯過重，改以 6 個月為起點並減刑一個月，最後改判囚 5 個月。
On 24 May 2020, during a march in Wan Chai and Causeway Bay against the National Anthem Law and National Security Law, then chairman of the Sha Tin District Council Zhihong (1967) Li was accused of falsely claiming that police had pushed him over and of verbally abusing officers with foul language. After trial, he was convicted of one count of disorderly conduct in a public place and sentenced to 7 months’ imprisonment.
Lee appealed against the conviction and sentence. On Friday (28th), High Court judge Cheung Wai-ling dismissed Lee’s appeal against conviction, upholding the guilty verdict, but allowed his appeal against sentence and reduced the term to 5 months. Lee was required to begin serving the sentence immediately.
The High Court judgment said the trial court had fully considered all the circumstances and Lee’s words and conduct, and found that he had behaved in a noisy or disorderly manner in a public place with the intention of provoking a breach of the peace. The verdict was “entirely reasonable”. On the sentence appeal, the judge considered the original sentencing starting point of 8 months manifestly excessive, revised the starting point to 6 months and reduced the sentence by one month, ultimately imposing 5 months’ imprisonment.
28 Jul 2023法庭線#8099
Department of Justice’s Application for ‘Glory to Hong Kong’ Injunction Rejected; Judge Says It Has No Real Utility and National Security Law Penalties Are Far Harsher Than Contempt of Court
律政司就《願榮光歸香港》申請禁制令案，禁止公眾播放或彈奏歌曲《願榮光》，高等法院法官陳健強周五（28 日）頒下判詞，拒絕批出臨時禁制令。法官指，律政司的申請有正當目的，但現時《國安法》的刑罰可達到終身監禁，遠比藐視法庭刑罰嚴厲，不信納禁制令有真正功用，對根深蒂固的違法者而言，亦不太可能被額外的禁令阻嚇。
法官又指，考慮申請時須顧及言論自由，但若非禁制令與《國安法》等法律有衝突， 即使會產生「寒蟬效應」，基於國家安全都應批出禁制令。
In the Department of Justice’s application for an injunction barring the public from broadcasting or playing the song ‘Glory to Hong Kong’, High Court judge Anthony Kin Keung Chan handed down a judgment on Friday (28th) refusing to grant an interim injunction. The judge said the Department of Justice had a legitimate purpose in making the application, but penalties under the National Security Law can include life imprisonment and are far harsher than those for contempt of court. The judge was not persuaded that the injunction would serve any real purpose, and said it was unlikely to deter entrenched lawbreakers through the imposition of an additional injunction.
28 Jul 2023法庭線#8102
HKFS and Student Activities Fund Limited files suit seeking disclosure of accounts; court approves extension of freeze on HKFS accounts
負責支付香港專上學生聯會（下稱學聯）日常運作經費的「學聯及學生活動基金有限公司」，上周四（20 日）入稟區域法院，要求法庭頒令學聯披露帳目，以及交還兩個會址的鎖匙及管有權。
案件周五（28 日）開庭，以處理原告方延長禁制令的申請，其中一名被告、嶺大學生會前成員陳穎茵到庭應訊，另 3 人包括曾參選中大校友評議會常委但遭取消資格的孫昊賢，則未有出庭。
暫委法官林美施指，被告人可控制學聯銀行戶口，有不當使用資產的風險，故批准延長禁制令，凍結學聯銀行戶口，但不包含各被告的個人戶口。禁制令延長至 9 月 27 日，屆時將處理有關被告陳穎茵的爭議；另 3 名沒到庭被告，則押後至 8 月 18 日再訊，以待原告方送交文件。
HKFS and Student Activities Fund Limited, which is responsible for paying the daily operating expenses of the Hong Kong Federation of Students (HKFS), filed an action in the District Court last Thursday (20th), seeking court orders requiring HKFS to disclose its accounts and return the keys to and possession of two office premises.
The case was heard on Friday (28th) to deal with the plaintiff’s application to extend the injunction. One of the defendants, Chan Wing-yan, a former member of the Lingnan University Students’ Union, attended the hearing. The other three, including Anthony Suen, who had run for the Standing Committee of the Chinese University of Hong Kong Alumni Senate but was disqualified, did not appear.
Acting judge Michelle Mei Sze Lam said the defendants could control HKFS’s bank accounts and there was a risk of the assets being improperly used. The judge therefore approved an extension of the injunction freezing HKFS’s bank accounts, but not the defendants’ personal accounts. The injunction was extended to 27 September, when the dispute involving Chan Wing-yan will be dealt with. The cases concerning the other three defendants who did not attend were adjourned to 18 August for mention, pending the plaintiff’s submission of documents.
27 Jul 2023法庭線#8087
38-year-old unemployed man jailed for two years after admitting ‘wounding 17’ over attack on Hk9cake staff member
葵涌廣場甜品店「Hk9cake」於 2022 年 2 月，遭 5 名男子闖入，並用棍襲擊店員，其中一名涉施襲男子當場被制伏。該男子周四（27 日）在區域法院承認一項俗稱「傷人17」的「有意圖而傷人」罪。
案情指，被告連同另 4 人進入「Hk9cake」店舖，其中一人手持膠棒，襲擊受害人 1 至 2 分鐘。被告當場被捕，另 4 人則逃去；醫療報告顯示，受害人頭部多處受傷。法官李俊文判刑時指，受害人工作時突遭多人施襲，即使傷勢較輕，但當時必然受到驚嚇，故判囚 2 年。
Five men broke into the Hk9cake dessert shop at Kwai Chung Plaza in February 2022 and attacked a staff member with a stick. One of the alleged attackers was subdued at the scene. The man pleaded guilty at the District Court on Thursday (27th) to one count of wounding with intent, commonly known as “wounding 17”.
The case heard that the defendant entered Hk9cake with four others, one of whom used a plastic rod to attack the victim for one to two minutes. The defendant was arrested at the scene, while the other four fled. A medical report showed that the victim sustained multiple injuries to the head. In sentencing, Judge Chun Man (OIAP) Li said the victim had been attacked by several people while at work and must have been frightened, even though the injuries were relatively minor, and sentenced him to two years in prison.
26 Jul 2023法庭線#8079
Man admits contempt of court over wearing yellow-umbrella sweatshirt at four hearings; gets two-month suspended sentence and HK$310,000 costs
2021 年 12 月，中年男子被指四度在高等法院、西九龍裁判法院聽審時，戴帽及穿著印有黃傘圖案的黑色衞衣等。其中一次，他被保安阻止後，強行進入法庭，推門時撞傷保安，又要求法官解釋，不能穿涉事衣物入庭，是否法官的意思。
被告周三（26 日）在高等法院承認藐視法庭罪，法官陳健強聽畢雙方陳詞，下午頒下判詞，判被告監禁兩個月，緩刑兩年，並須向律政司支付 31 萬元懲罰性訟費。
In December 2021, a middle-aged man was accused of wearing a hat and a black sweatshirt bearing a yellow umbrella design, among other items, on four occasions while attending hearings at the High Court and West Kowloon Magistrates’ Courts. On one occasion, after being stopped by security, he forced his way into the courtroom, injuring a security guard when pushing the door. He also asked the judge to explain whether the prohibition on wearing the clothing in question in court was the judge’s intention.
The defendant pleaded guilty to contempt of court at the High Court on Wednesday (the 26th). After hearing submissions from both sides, Judge Anthony Kin Keung Chan handed down judgment in the afternoon, sentencing him to two months’ imprisonment suspended for two years and ordering him to pay HK$310,000 in punitive costs to the Department of Justice.
25 Jul 2023獨媒#8072
MTR staff knelt on youth’s neck during fare inspection; legal aid denied for compensation claim
一名患強迫症、持殘疾人士登記證的青年去年在港鐵杏花邨站，以殘疾人士八達通出閘時，遭最少5名職員截查和按地制服，青年更被跪頸，需住院11天。受襲青年被控告襲擊港鐵職員，法庭早前裁定他罪名不成立，但因損毀職員的眼鏡，刑毀罪成罰款。裁判官在判詞狠批港鐵職員以「不堪」手法制服，亦指《港鐵附例》無賦權職員可用合理武力。青年早前擬向港鐵提出民事索償，但申請法援遭拒。歷經案件龐大壓力後，他透露已對是否繼續索償抱有疑問，但對事件仍未釋懷，「我淨係想港鐵道歉」。
A youth with obsessive-compulsive disorder who holds a Registration Card for People with Disabilities was stopped and restrained on the ground by at least five MTR staff members last year while exiting at Heng Fa Chuen Station using a disability Octopus card. A staff member also knelt on his neck, and he required 11 days of hospital treatment. The youth was charged with assaulting MTR staff. The court earlier found him not guilty, but convicted him of criminal damage and fined him for damaging a staff member’s spectacles. In the judgment, the magistrate strongly criticised the MTR staff for using “unacceptable” methods to restrain him, and said the MTR Bylaws did not authorise staff to use reasonable force. The youth had earlier planned to bring a civil compensation claim against MTR, but his application for legal aid was refused. After enduring considerable pressure from the case, he said he was now uncertain whether to continue pursuing the claim, but had still not come to terms with what happened: “I just want MTR to apologise.”
25 Jul 2023法庭線#8075
Hong Kong Golf Club Granted Leave for Judicial Review of Fanling Golf Course EIA Report; High Court Orders Temporary Stay of EPD Decision
政府計劃 2023 年 9 月，收回粉嶺高球場部分用地建屋，香港哥爾夫球會上周五（21 日）入稟高等法院，就粉嶺高爾夫球場用地發展的環評報告，向環保署提出司法覆核，要求法庭推翻環保署批准報告的決定，並擱置決定至司法覆核有結果。
高等法院原訟庭法官高浩文周二（25 日）頒下書面判詞，批准哥球會的司法覆核許可申請，並下令臨時擱置環保署決定，待案件進行聆訊。聆訊暫定於 8 月中進行，待訴訟各方確實日期。
The Government plans to take back part of the Fanling Golf Course site for housing development in September 2023. The Hong Kong Golf Club filed an application with the High Court last Friday (21st) for judicial review of the Environmental Protection Department’s environmental impact assessment report for the development of the Fanling Golf Course site, seeking to overturn the department’s decision to approve the report and to stay the decision pending the outcome of the judicial review.
In a written judgment handed down on Tuesday (25th), High Court of First Instance judge Ko Ho-man granted the club leave to apply for judicial review and ordered a temporary stay of the Environmental Protection Department’s decision pending the hearing of the case. The hearing is provisionally scheduled for mid-August, subject to the parties confirming the date.
25 Jul 2023法庭線#8077
Conviction of 17-year-old for unlawful assembly restored after Department of Justice wins final appeal; immediate imprisonment ordered
2019 年實施《禁蒙面法》後，多區爆發示威。當時 16 歲的男學生被指在黃大仙以電筒照向行人天橋的警員，原審裁定非法集結罪成，判入勞教中心。男生後來向高院上訴得直。律政司不服提終極上訴，終院 5 名法官周二（25 日）頒下判詞，裁定律政司上訴得直，回復男生的定罪裁決及刑罰，他須即時服刑。
終院認為，原審裁判官及高院法官採取過於狹隘方式，處理現場 4 人在梯級以鐳射筆和電筒照射警方的行為，忽略現場環境。而當時男生意識到身旁人士以電筒及鐳射筆照射警方，又從當中一人手上接過電筒，與其他人一同照射警方，已可作出不可抗拒推論，裁定他有意參與非法集結。
After the Prohibition on Face Covering Regulation was implemented in 2019, protests broke out in multiple districts. A male student, then 16, was accused of shining a flashlight at police officers on a pedestrian footbridge in Wong Tai Sin. He was convicted of unlawful assembly at first instance and sentenced to a training centre. He later won his appeal in the High Court. The Department of Justice, dissatisfied with the decision, brought a final appeal. On Tuesday (25th), five judges of the Court of Final Appeal handed down their judgment, allowing the Department of Justice’s appeal and reinstating the boy’s conviction and sentence. He must serve the sentence immediately.
The Court of Final Appeal held that the trial magistrate and the High Court judge had adopted an overly narrow approach in dealing with the conduct of four people at the scene who shone laser pointers and flashlights at police officers on the steps, while overlooking the circumstances at the scene. The boy was aware that people beside him were shining flashlights and laser pointers at police, and had taken a flashlight from one of them and shone it at police together with the others. This was sufficient to support the irresistible inference that he intended to participate in the unlawful assembly.
Translations are supplied by the source workbook. Consult the original reporting for context.
