The Tangshan assault shows blatant disregard for the law; the crackdown on organized crime must be severe and unforgiving!
[4] Compiled from: Red Star News
Case review
On June 10, a surveillance video circulated online showing that at a barbecue restaurant on Jichang Road in Tangshan, Hebei, a man walked up to a woman in white and touched her back, but she dodged away. A conflict then broke out between the two sides. A woman in black who stepped in to help was thrown heavily to the ground, and the woman in white was dragged outside the restaurant by the man’s companions and continued to be beaten.
[3] That evening, the Lubei Branch of the Tangshan Public Security Bureau announced that two main suspects had been criminally detained according to law, with other suspects being actively pursued. Police vowed strict legal action to protect the victims’ lawful rights.
On the afternoon of the 11th, according to a notice from the Tangshan police, the last suspect in the barbecue restaurant assault case, who was from another province, had been apprehended in Jiangsu, and all nine individuals involved in the case had been brought to justice.
[5] Currently, the injured woman is in stable condition.
"Criminal Law of the People's Republic of China"
Article 234
Whoever intentionally inflicts injury upon another person shall be sentenced to fixed-term imprisonment of not more than three years, criminal detention or public surveillance.
Whoever commits the crime mentioned in the preceding paragraph, causing serious injury to another person, shall be sentenced to fixed-term imprisonment of not less than three years but not more than ten years; if causing death or causing serious injury by particularly cruel means, resulting in severe disability, the offender shall be sentenced to fixed-term imprisonment of not less than ten years, life imprisonment or death. Where this Law provides otherwise, such provisions shall prevail.
Article 293
Whoever commits any of the following acts of picking quarrels and provoking trouble, thereby disrupting social order, shall be sentenced to fixed-term imprisonment of not more than five years, criminal detention or public surveillance:
(1) Beating another person at will, if the circumstances are flagrant;
(2) Chasing, intercepting, verbally abusing or intimidating another person, if the circumstances are flagrant;
(3) Forcibly taking or demanding, or willfully damaging or occupying public or private property, if the circumstances are serious;
(4) Creating disturbances in public places, causing severe disorder in public places.
Whoever gathers others to repeatedly commit the acts mentioned in the preceding paragraph, seriously disrupting social order, shall be sentenced to fixed-term imprisonment of not less than five years but not more than ten years, and may also be fined.
[1] The author's perspective
Currently, all individuals involved in this case have been apprehended, leading netizens to discuss what penalties they might face. The author believes that the charges of intentional injury or picking quarrels and provoking trouble are more likely.
The final conviction of the suspects in this case will mainly depend on the evidence. If the injury assessment result is minor injury, the charge of picking quarrels and provoking trouble may apply; if it constitutes serious injury, the charge of intentional injury may apply. According to judicial interpretations, if an act of picking quarrels and provoking trouble simultaneously meets the constitutive elements of both the crime of picking quarrels and provoking trouble and the crime of intentional injury, the conviction and punishment shall be based on the offense with the heavier penalty.
In recent years, China has been continuously carrying out the campaign against organized crime and local mafia to ensure the stability of people's lives and long-term social order. Acts that undermine social harmony and people's sense of security must be legally combated and severely punished without leniency! The reason this case has sparked such strong public opinion is that its actions constitute a blatant trampling on others' personal rights. The campaign against organized crime and local mafia is the will of the people, a response to the law, an answer to the public, and a resolution for the victims.
