#Court
Private prosecution system can be abused: minister
//Justice Secretary Teresa Cheng on Tuesday set out a host of reasons why she might have to intervene in a private prosecution accepted by a magistrate, at a time when pro-democracy lawmakers are pursuing cases against the police and a rival legislator.//
//Cheng said the Department of Justice has an obligation to intervene in and discontinue a private prosecution which is considered to have no reasonable prospect of conviction, be contrary to the public interest, be brought out of improper motives, or constitute an abuse of process.//
//Last week, an Eastern Court magistrate agreed to summon a police officer who shot a protester with live ammunition last November, in a private prosecution brought by Ted Hui. The Democratic Party legislator also has a case against a taxi driver whose vehicle ploughed into a group of protesters last October.
People Power lawmaker Ray Chan, meanwhile, has filed an application to launch a private prosecution against pro-Beijing rival Kwok Wai-keung over an alleged assault in Legco last month.//
Source: RTHK
#Jun16 #PrivateProsecutionSystem #TeresaCheng
Private prosecution system can be abused: minister
//Justice Secretary Teresa Cheng on Tuesday set out a host of reasons why she might have to intervene in a private prosecution accepted by a magistrate, at a time when pro-democracy lawmakers are pursuing cases against the police and a rival legislator.//
//Cheng said the Department of Justice has an obligation to intervene in and discontinue a private prosecution which is considered to have no reasonable prospect of conviction, be contrary to the public interest, be brought out of improper motives, or constitute an abuse of process.//
//Last week, an Eastern Court magistrate agreed to summon a police officer who shot a protester with live ammunition last November, in a private prosecution brought by Ted Hui. The Democratic Party legislator also has a case against a taxi driver whose vehicle ploughed into a group of protesters last October.
People Power lawmaker Ray Chan, meanwhile, has filed an application to launch a private prosecution against pro-Beijing rival Kwok Wai-keung over an alleged assault in Legco last month.//
Source: RTHK
#Jun16 #PrivateProsecutionSystem #TeresaCheng
news.rthk.hk
Private prosecution system can be abused: minister
Justice Secretary Teresa Cheng on Tuesday set out a host of reasons why she might have to intervene in a private prosecution accepted by a magistrate, at a time when pro-democracy lawmakers are pursuing cases against the police and a rival legislator. Writing…
#OpinionArticle
Is The Department of Justice Going to Interfere With Private Prosecutions?
Secretary for Justice Teresa Cheng wrote on her blog today, stating that that Department of Justice has the rights to interfere with private prosecutions. Obviously, she was talking about the case of Raymond Chan Chi-chuen versus Kwok Wai-keung and the case between Hui Chi-fung and the police officer who fired his gun in Sai Wan Ho.
Private prosecution is an important part of the common law system to protect citizens. The Court of United Kingdom states that private prosecutions serve as “a valuable constitutional protection against the neglect and bias of the authority”. Why?
Under normal circumstances, a prosecution is the responsibility of Department of Justice. Yet, when the justice department of a society chooses to ignore injustice and refuses to prosecute and stand for justice, private prosecutions provide citizens the right to prosecute.
In other words, its function is to maintain the checks and balances of the Department of Justice, and the execution bodies when they are biased, of which is the situation that Hong Kong is in now.
The Honourable Mr Justice Kevin Paul Zervos said that, “the public has the right to know the standards and guidelines of prosecutors in criminal proceedings. They also have the right to experience these standards.”
Yet, nowadays, most Hong Kong citizens are not allowed to learn about these standards. More and more cases make citizens question the independence and professionalism of these bodies.
＊＊＊＊
Private prosecutions have always been an essential part of the Hong Kong law system.
Legal expert Simon M.N. Young (2009) said, HKDOJ cannot monopolise the right to prosecute. In 1970s, the Court of Appeal was aware that “there are private prosecutions from time to time” in Hong Kong, including private prosecutions against the police torturing citizens.
It means that private prosecution has always been a norm in Hong Kong history. The Department Of Justice should not interfere. The interference of the Department Of Justice is actually a very delicate matter, and usually under special circumstances. For example, the prosecution does not have substantial evidences, and obviously violates the interest of the public or very tedious. This is not a simple matter, and as Cheng put it, it is “unnecessary or unreasonable”.
The law states that Department Of Justice has the right to interfere or even end a private prosecution. However this is used to prevent the public from abusing their rights, instead of allowing the Department Of Justice to have superior rights to cancel a prosecution.
In the case of Dyson v Attorney General: CA 1911, the court states that the right to stop a prosecution “should not be enacted easily. Only when a prosecution is misused, it can be used. “
＊＊＊＊
The private prosecutions of Chen Chi-chuen and Hui Chi-fung were accepted by the court and summons were issued. This shows that the prosecutions were reasonable to begin with. If Cheng really interferes with or stops the prosecution, it would mean that that she is questioning the professional judgement of the judge, and putting political pressure on the magistrates.
This has the potential to be something big.
Article From: 書生百用
#Jun16 #TeresaCheng #PrivateProsecutionSystem
Is The Department of Justice Going to Interfere With Private Prosecutions?
Secretary for Justice Teresa Cheng wrote on her blog today, stating that that Department of Justice has the rights to interfere with private prosecutions. Obviously, she was talking about the case of Raymond Chan Chi-chuen versus Kwok Wai-keung and the case between Hui Chi-fung and the police officer who fired his gun in Sai Wan Ho.
Private prosecution is an important part of the common law system to protect citizens. The Court of United Kingdom states that private prosecutions serve as “a valuable constitutional protection against the neglect and bias of the authority”. Why?
Under normal circumstances, a prosecution is the responsibility of Department of Justice. Yet, when the justice department of a society chooses to ignore injustice and refuses to prosecute and stand for justice, private prosecutions provide citizens the right to prosecute.
In other words, its function is to maintain the checks and balances of the Department of Justice, and the execution bodies when they are biased, of which is the situation that Hong Kong is in now.
The Honourable Mr Justice Kevin Paul Zervos said that, “the public has the right to know the standards and guidelines of prosecutors in criminal proceedings. They also have the right to experience these standards.”
Yet, nowadays, most Hong Kong citizens are not allowed to learn about these standards. More and more cases make citizens question the independence and professionalism of these bodies.
＊＊＊＊
Private prosecutions have always been an essential part of the Hong Kong law system.
Legal expert Simon M.N. Young (2009) said, HKDOJ cannot monopolise the right to prosecute. In 1970s, the Court of Appeal was aware that “there are private prosecutions from time to time” in Hong Kong, including private prosecutions against the police torturing citizens.
It means that private prosecution has always been a norm in Hong Kong history. The Department Of Justice should not interfere. The interference of the Department Of Justice is actually a very delicate matter, and usually under special circumstances. For example, the prosecution does not have substantial evidences, and obviously violates the interest of the public or very tedious. This is not a simple matter, and as Cheng put it, it is “unnecessary or unreasonable”.
The law states that Department Of Justice has the right to interfere or even end a private prosecution. However this is used to prevent the public from abusing their rights, instead of allowing the Department Of Justice to have superior rights to cancel a prosecution.
In the case of Dyson v Attorney General: CA 1911, the court states that the right to stop a prosecution “should not be enacted easily. Only when a prosecution is misused, it can be used. “
＊＊＊＊
The private prosecutions of Chen Chi-chuen and Hui Chi-fung were accepted by the court and summons were issued. This shows that the prosecutions were reasonable to begin with. If Cheng really interferes with or stops the prosecution, it would mean that that she is questioning the professional judgement of the judge, and putting political pressure on the magistrates.
This has the potential to be something big.
Article From: 書生百用
#Jun16 #TeresaCheng #PrivateProsecutionSystem
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今日鄭若驊在網誌上撰寫指律政司有權介入私人檢控，明顯是特別針對陳志全和許智峯分別對郭健強和西灣河開槍交通警的個案。 「私人檢控 (Private Prosecution) 」是普通法系中保障公民的重要權力。英國法院曾指私人檢控是「針對權力機關怠慢或偏袒的一項寶貴憲法保障」。為什麼英國法院會這樣說？...