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Top court to clarify self-defense

By CAO YIN | China Daily | Updated: 2018-09-19 09:05
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Interpretation is expected to define justifiability, protect good Samaritans

Judicial professionals gave a thumbs-up after China's top court said it is preparing to interpret when self-defense should be considered excessive, calling the move a driving force to ending controversies in legal practice.

On Tuesday, the Supreme People's Court announced that it would further define justifiable self-defense and clarify the situations in which defense should be considered excessive. It will also consider what penalties offenders should face and provide a judicial interpretation.

"Making the interpretation protects the rights of good Samaritans, encourages people to help each other and promotes friendliness," said Jiang Qibo, head of the top court's research office.

The interpretation has been written into the court's plan for implementing socialist core values in the next five years. The highest justice authority did not say when it would issue the document.

Wang Wanqiong, a criminal lawyer from Sichuan province, said she could not wait to see the interpretation, as a case she is handling has had problems over the question of how self-defense should be defined.

Her client was sentenced to nine years in prison for intentional injury after he struck another man with a broken bottle and killed him in a bar in Shaanxi province last year.

"The defendant was attacked first, and he also called the ambulance several times after finding he had seriously injured the drunken attacker," Wang said, wondering why his action should not be considered justifiable self-defense, in the same way that authorities in Kunshan, Jiangsu province, said after another incident last month.

In August, police and prosecutors in Kunshan determined that the fatal stabbing of a man who had attacked an electric bike rider was justifiable self-defense and said the bike rider should not be held criminally liable.

"Different results in two similar cases means it's the right time to specify what self-defense is and what behaviors should be considered excessive," the lawyer said, adding that the answer to the question is not clear. It should be clarified to "alleviate the disorder in the legal practice", she said.

She highlighted the significance of the case in Kunshan, adding that it was the driving force that pushed the top court to make the interpretation.

Ruan Chuansheng, a criminal law professor at the Shanghai Administration Institute, said it is a must for the court to interpret the matter, as it is key to upholding justice in society.

"Residents, I believe, will be bolder about defending themselves when attacked, and be encouraged to help others in difficulties if the interpretation is issued," he said.

The top court's five-year plan said it would highlight the importance of protecting personal information, property and wildlife through judicial interpretations.

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