The Taiwan High Court yesterday overturned the conviction of Hsu Tzu-chiang (徐自強), who was on death row for two decades, as the ruling in his ninth appeal found there were major flaws and inconsistencies in the evidence and testimonies in the 1995 kidnapping and murder case.
Friends and family of Hsu, together with supporters and judicial reform activists, celebrated outside the court after the ruling was announced.
Hsu was found guilty and given the death penalty in his first six trials. He received a sentence of life imprisonment instead of capital punishment in the seventh and eighth appeals.
Photo: CNA
“I have waited for this for 20 years. When the ‘not guilty’ verdict was read out, I was overcome by emotion. However, this is not the end, because the prosecutors can still appeal the case,” Hsu said.
“Now I just want to wake up from this long nightmare. My family did not give up on me. They always believed that I was innocent,” he added.
Hsu’s mother, Chen Hsiu-chin (陳秀琴), tearfully said: “Finally, I can see my son found innocent by the court. If not for his lawyers and supporters, I would not be able to see my son standing here today.”
Lin Yung-sung (林永頌), one of Hsu’s lawyers, urged the Taiwan High Prosecutors’ Office not to appeal the case to the Supreme Court.
“Today’s ruling is a major step forward for the justice system,” Lin said.
“The justice system upholds the law for society, but it can make mistakes. It is important to proceed through the legal remedy process to right the wrongs in the system,” he added.
The case stemmed from the September 1995 kidnapping and murder of businessman Huang Chun-shu (黃春樹), whose kidnappers originally asked for a ransom of NT$70 million (US$2.14 million at current exchange rates).
Two suspects, Huang Chun-chi (黃春棋) and Chen Yi-lung (陳憶隆), were found guilty as the main perpetrators and were given the death penalty.
During their trials, the two men said Hsu participated in the kidnapping.
The High Court upheld the lower court’s rulings on Huang Chun-chi and Chen, and the Supreme Court rejected their appeals in 2000, making the death sentences final. Extraordinary appeals were filed on their behalves in the following years.
Yesterday’s “not guilty” verdict for Hsu rested mainly on inconsistencies in the testimony of Huang Chun-chi and Chen, and lack of forensic evidence of Hsu’s involvement. Hsu said the two men implicated him because they wanted revenge over a private dispute.
Another suspect, Huang Ming-chuan (黃銘泉), fled to Thailand shortly after the crime was discovered, and Thai authorities reported he was killed in December 1995.
Hsu’s conviction, death sentence and long imprisonment have long been a cause celebre for legal reform, anti-death penalty activists in Taiwan and groups such as Amnesty International.
His case has already had a major impact on the nation’s judicial system.
The Control Yuan issued a scathing report in 2001 on his conviction, citing serious flaws in the case and saying that the prosecutors’ arguments were “illogical” and that they had ignored testimony that Hsu was not at the scene of the crime.
The Council of Grand Justices ruled in 2004 that it was unconstitutional to use the confessions of Hsu’s codefendants against him without allowing his lawyers to cross-examine them.
The council’s Constitutional Interpretation No. 582 applied to new cases, but because of limited resources, was applied retroactively in Hsu’s case alone, which was reopened in 2005, allowing for additional appeals by both Hsu’s attorneys and prosecutors.
Additional reporting by Diane Baker
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