Trial for police killings begins
The murder trial of Yang Jia , charged with killing six police officers in an attack on a police station in Shanghai, began yesterday.
Shanghai No2 Intermediate People's Court posted a notice giving the trial time as 1pm, and Xinhua reported the court had started hearing the case and was still considering a judgment.
Prosecutors charged Yang, 27, with premeditated murder after he had stabbed a security guard at the gate of the Zhabei district police station, then entered the building and stabbed nine officers on July 1. Besides the six killed, three officers and the security guard were wounded.
The violent nature of the crime shocked Shanghai, which had already tightened security ahead of hosting Olympic soccer matches this month.
Prosecutors say Yang staged the attack as revenge after he was stopped and detained by police for riding an unlicensed bicycle last October. He was released and later demanded compensation for mental anguish, a claim police rejected.
In some circles, Yang has received sympathy as an alleged victim of police abuse. Some question why he was detained for such a minor offence, of which he later proved to be innocent.
However, Shanghai police said he had failed to show identity documents and was unco-operative and abusive. They denied claims that he was beaten while in custody.
At the courthouse, a group of reporters waited outside the gates, which were heavily guarded. The court declined to answer questions about the case.
Two lawyers are defending Yang: Xie Youming and another advocate, according to the Shanghai media website Eastday.
Shanghai authorities reportedly prevented a Beijing lawyer who had been hired by Yang's father from seeing the accused, saying he would accept only legal counsel authorised by his mother. His parents are divorced.
The move inspired an unusual letter from a group of Beijing lawyers, who said Xie had a conflict of interest because he was also counsel for the district where the attack took place.
The trial started less than two months after the crime. Yang is expected to be sentenced to death. Prosecutors say he meticulously planned the attack, surveying the station and preparing equipment, which included a knife and homemade bombs.
