Judge delays sentencing of Joshua Wong and 15 activists for defying court order during 2014 Occupy protests
Lawyers for the 16 highlighted the mitigating factors in their clients’ cases during a two-hour court session
However, Mr Justice Andrew Chan Hing-wai delayed sentencing to a later date to allow Wong’s defence counsel to address him again, after a two-hour session where lawyers for Wong and 15 other activists highlighted the mitigating factors in their clients’ cases.
Senior counsel Lawrence Lok Ying-kam had requested that the court seek a probation report for Wong, something that lawyers do to invite the court to consider a non-jail sentence, such as a probation order.
High Court allows contempt of court actions against 20 Occupy activists over Mong Kok clearance to continue
“There are not many options a sentencing court can impose in relation to criminal contempt,” the judge mused.
But some non-custodial sentences, such as a community service order, were clearly not options for a contempt of court conviction, Chan said. He cited the Hong Kong White Book, a document that governs civil court procedures in the city.
The judge said he wondered if a probation or detention centre order would be an option so he asked Lok to further address him on that before requesting the probation report.
“If at the end of the day, it is not an option. What’s the point?” he said.