Chapter 227 - 133: The Labeling Tactic

At the front of the room, another voice suddenly rang out.

"Respondent."

"Regarding this case..."

Huang Shi looked up and his gaze met another’s—the gaze of his provincial superior’s own boss from the Supreme Procuratorate.

"Privately obtaining evidence without it being verified through the procuratorial process."

"And compressing the cross-examination period... how can you ensure the evidence is authentic and untampered with?"

A bombshell...

Another bombshell of a question, aimed from a wickedly clever angle!

The reason legal procedures are so time-consuming is their inherent complexity.

But in the judiciary, this complexity isn’t a bad thing. It helps complete the chain of evidence and makes legal cases more just and fair!

A case that was originally expected to take half a year to conclude was instead wrapped up in under a month...

The timeline was so short, and the evidence wasn’t even obtained by the prosecutor but by Xu De. So how can you guarantee the evidence is valid?

Fortunately, this question had also been anticipated.

"Regarding Vice Chief Prosecutor Liu’s inquiry, our side has prepared a statement in advance."

"In this case, the evidence is conclusive and the facts are clear. There was no false evidence, no evidence of insufficient validity, and no forced verdict."

"As stated previously, this was not a trial by ambush on our part, but rather a delayed submission."

Huang Shi began to speak slowly, his head lowered as he read from the script.

"After the evidence was submitted, the court recessed as usual to conduct a cross-examination and investigation."

"During this period, the opposing party was lawfully given the full amount of time to respond to the cross-examination. None of their statutory litigation rights were denied."

"The evidence was only admitted after being verified by all three parties."

"It was not admitted on the spot during the hearing. The facts were confirmed to be sound, and the evidence went through a strict and fully compliant process of presentation, investigation, cross-examination, and admission."

There are two types of trial by ambush.

One is when a verdict is announced immediately after the evidence is admitted in court. This is a particularly egregious type.

If the evidence turns out to be false, it almost always leads to a miscarriage of justice.

The other is the type Huang Shi just described.

The evidence is submitted, the court recesses for cross-examination, and once the evidence is confirmed to be authentic, it is legally admitted.

Therefore...

"The cross-examination period for this case was not compressed."

Huang Shi looked at the script, feeling a strange sense of absurdity, but he continued to speak:

"The timeline was only accelerated because we precisely targeted the crime, streamlined the prosecution process, and eliminated unnecessary complexities."

"Its authenticity can withstand any judicial review, and it possesses full legal evidentiary value!"

’Eliminating complexities, precisely targeting...’

’Isn’t that just a fancy way of saying it was a trial by ambush, forcing the court into a hasty cross-examination?’

’Looks like I really need to study the art of language. It’s an essential skill.’

Vice Chief Prosecutor Liu nodded and did not speak again.

He was from the procuratorate, and this was the most significant error made by the procuratorate in this case. Since the other party had provided an answer, there was nothing more for him to say.

But just because he didn’t, it didn’t mean others wouldn’t!

In the tense silence that followed,

Lu Guohua, the Vice Secretary of the Political and Legal Affairs Commission, spoke up abruptly, his voice cutting through the quiet:

"In a public prosecution case, the procuratorate is supposed to be the one to gather evidence and pursue the charges..."

"...yet this case was ultimately decided based on evidence presented mid-trial by the other party. Doesn’t this highlight a functional shortcoming in the Lusen City Procuratorate?"

’A functional shortcoming?’

’Damn, this is basically pointing at my nose and calling me useless! Saying the other side gathered all the evidence while I just sat there like a good-for-nothing, relying entirely on them?!’

Within the system, admitting to something like that would, at best, ruin your career, and at worst, drag down the entire procuratorate!

Everyone in the room gasped.

Lu Guohua’s question was both cunning and incredibly difficult to answer.

If you said you were competent, it was obvious you had relied on the other party’s information. If you said you were incompetent, your career was over. It was a classic catch-22.

However...

On the stage,

Huang Shi stared at the script. He opened his mouth, but the words stuck in his throat, and for a long moment, he didn’t dare to speak.

’This script...’

’Just what was going through their head when they wrote this?!’

Huang Shi stared at the script for a long time.

"Vice Secretary Lu, this case is not a matter of the procuratorate’s incompetence."

"In this case, the interests of the public prosecutor and the victim’s representative were aligned. Both parties formed a community of interest to protect the victim."

"Both sides performed their respective duties, maximizing their available rights within their roles, and subsequently complemented each other’s efforts."

Finally, with a twitch at the corner of his eye, he steeled himself and spoke:

"It is our belief,"

"that this case does not demonstrate a shortcoming in public service."

"On the contrary, it proves that the procuratorate and the people are one family! Both sides did their utmost to eradicate a social evil, reflecting the public’s simple and heartfelt desire to see justice done."

He continued, pausing for a moment before delivering the rest of the statement in one go.

"In conclusion."

"Regarding this specific case."

"The joint investigation by the procuratorate and the public confirmed the facts of the matter without error. Furthermore, it demonstrates the ’one family’ relationship between them. This is an outstanding model case! It shows that grassroots cadres have not detached themselves from the masses or their class, but instead work alongside the people to jointly uphold and defend judicial justice!"

The moment he finished speaking, the entire conference room fell silent. Everyone looked up, staring blankly at the man on the stage.

This...

What kind of political framing was this?