The trial of the man accused of decapitating a four-year-old girl in Taipei’s Neihu District (內湖) opened yesterday, with Wang Ching-yu’s (王景玉) defense lawyer saying his client is unfit to stand trial because of a mental disorder.
Wang, 33, is accused of decapitating the girl, nicknamed “Little Lightbulb” (小燈泡), in front of her mother on March 28.
During questioning by a Shilin District Court judge, Wang rambled, giving incoherent and sometimes outlandish answers, and quoting from Chinese mythology and folk religious beliefs.
Photo: Chu Pei-hsiung, Taipei Times
Wang’s lawyer, Liang Chia-ying (梁家贏), requested that the trial be suspended, saying Wang suffers from a mental disorder.
Liang urged the court to conduct another psychological evaluation of Wang and for other inmates to be called for questioning to attest to his behavior and mental condition in detention.
“Wang is unable to correctly express his ideas and the stuffs he wrote in his notebooks. He has been living in his own world with his own distorted view of history, immersed in Chinese mythology and ancient war battles,” Liang said.
The judge rejected Liang’s arguments, saying the suspect was able to clearly describe details of his action when questioned by police and prosecutors.
Wang seems to have no problem explaining things from his own perspective, and a proper psychological evaluation had already been conducted by medical experts, the judge said.
Observers in the courtroom said it was chilling to hear Wang describe the murder.
“I just took my cleaver, like this, and I stabbed her twice, then the girl’s head broke off,” he said.
The girl’s mother broke down several times, and was seen wiping away her tears. Her lawyer asked if she would like to leave the courtroom temporarily, but she declined and continued to listen to the entire proceeding.
The judge said he would discuss with other judges of the court’s Collegiate Bench whether another psychological evaluation is needed.
He then suspended the hearing and said it would reconvene on July 21.
Some critics have said they do not believe that Wang has a serious mental problem, saying he was just acting in court to escape responsibility for his action and obtain a more lenient punishment.
Speaking to reporters after the hearing, the girl’s mother said: “The death of Little Lightbulb is a pain that we can never forget. We have chosen a difficult path, by standing up and sincerely requesting that such tragedies be reduced in the future. We need more effort from the government to patch up the holes in our social safety net.”
“We hope to raise public concern over this issue, so that people can work together and create a safe environment for all children,” she said.
‘DENIAL DEFENSE’: The US would increase its military presence with uncrewed ships, and submarines, while boosting defense in the Indo-Pacific, a Pete Hegseth memo said The US is reorienting its military strategy to focus primarily on deterring a potential Chinese invasion of Taiwan, a memo signed by US Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth showed. The memo also called on Taiwan to increase its defense spending. The document, known as the “Interim National Defense Strategic Guidance,” was distributed this month and detailed the national defense plans of US President Donald Trump’s administration, an article in the Washington Post said on Saturday. It outlines how the US can prepare for a potential war with China and defend itself from threats in the “near abroad,” including Greenland and the Panama
The Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) is maintaining close ties with Beijing, the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) said yesterday, hours after a new round of Chinese military drills in the Taiwan Strait began. Political parties in a democracy have a responsibility to be loyal to the nation and defend its sovereignty, DPP spokesman Justin Wu (吳崢) told a news conference in Taipei. His comments came hours after Beijing announced via Chinese state media that the Chinese People’s Liberation Army’s Eastern Theater Command was holding large-scale drills simulating a multi-pronged attack on Taiwan. Contrary to the KMT’s claims that it is staunchly anti-communist, KMT Deputy
RESPONSE: The government would investigate incidents of Taiwanese entertainers in China promoting CCP propaganda online in contravention of the law, the source said Taiwanese entertainers living in China who are found to have contravened cross-strait regulations or collaborated with the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) could be subject to fines, a source said on Sunday. Several Taiwanese entertainers have posted on the social media platform Sina Weibo saying that Taiwan “must be returned” to China, and sharing news articles from Chinese state media. In response, the Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) has asked the Ministry of Culture to investigate whether the entertainers had contravened any laws, and asked for them to be questioned upon their return to Taiwan, an official familiar with the matter said. To curb repeated
Myanmar has turned down an offer of assistance from Taiwanese search-and-rescue teams after a magnitude 7.7 earthquake struck the nation on Friday last week, saying other international aid is sufficient, the National Fire Agency said yesterday. More than 1,700 have been killed and 3,400 injured in the quake that struck near the central Myanmar city of Mandalay early on Friday afternoon, followed minutes later by a magnitude 6.7 aftershock. Worldwide, 13 international search-and-rescue teams have been deployed, with another 13 teams mobilizing, the agency said. Taiwan’s search-and-rescue teams were on standby, but have since been told to stand down, as