Yang Jia (28) was found guilty, at a closed hearing, of premeditated murder, in connection with the knifing deaths of six police. He's now been sentenced to death for the July attack, in which four others were injured.
In a not uncommon move in China, members of the public, including Yang Jia's family and friends, and foreign media were barred from the court.
Foreign news outlets report some Internet sites and blogs carrying criticisms of the case have apparently been blocked, shut down or deleted.
Claims of revenge
Los Angeles Times' says since the outset there's been an outpouring of online comments from Chinese citizens and the local media about how a seemingly minor incident could trigger such a violent rampage.
Yang Jia had earlier been interrogated at the same police station on suspicion of stealing a bicycle and there are claims the attack was about revenge.
" … Many Chinese raised suspicions that Yang was beaten by police, which Shanghai authorities denied. Police said Yang in fact had rented the bicycle, and that he demanded about $1,450 in compensation from authorities for mental anguish … "
The paper quotes Beijing attorney Liu Xiaoyuan, saying "he believed that the extensive public reaction to this case reflected ordinary citizens' generally negative view of the police and their power, as well as of the lack of transparency in China's legal system".
Rare public criticism
Reuters talks about how it's rare for a case in China – where thousands are executed every year and support for capital punishment is strong – to draw out public criticism of police.
They quote one of the more than a dozen people gathered outside the court, who had been barred from the hearing:
" … "Why is this so secret? The government should make this more open so justice can be served," said one of them, a man who gave only his surname, Wang.
" "Now people are wondering whether this trial was conducted fairly or not." …"
Doubt and questions
Other questions have also been raised including doubt about the independence of Yang Jia's lawyer and why police only released a few minutes of tape from a 40 minute interrogation session.
The Telegraph says the man's lawyers haven't been contactable since his arrest, and a note outside their office says it will be closed for the foreseeable future.
Yang Jia has become a symbol for a growing number of people who're denouncing Chinese police to protest at the brutality of the state, reports the UK paper.
" … Mr Yang has even been compared to Wu Song, one of the greatest heroes in Chinese literature, who killed a tiger with his bare hands …"
Credible reports
Chinese citizens, along with the entire world, don't know how many people are executed in their country each year – the Government calls the statistics a state secret.
It claims 1,010 people were executed in 2006, but Amnesty International has credible reports putting the figure closer to 8,000. During that same year, the rest of the world combined executed about 1,591 people.
China hasn't announced a figure for last year, but based on media reports we estimate at least 470 people were put to death – the true figure is undoubtedly much higher.
What do you think? Are there times when use of the death penalty is acceptable? Can a fair trial ever be guaranteed?
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