The Department of Justice (DoJ) has sought to impeach the former pro-democracy lawmaker Lam Cheuk-ting’s acquitted of perverting the course of justice in connection with an incident during the 2019 protests and riots.
Government prosecutors told the Court of Appeal on Thursday that Lam intended to pervert the course of justice by demanding that a person, referred to as “X”, delete photos of protesters at a July 2019 march.
The DoJ is also seeking to overturn the acquittal of Lam’s co-defendants: former InMedia journalist Ronnie Tsang, 28, and social worker Aggie Chung, 39.
According to details of the case read out at earlier hearings, Lam and Tsang were accused of perverting the course of justice by asking X to delete photos from his phone showing the faces of protesters who may have committed criminal offenses that day.
Tsang was also charged with unlawful collection and later jailed for 13 months, while Chung was charged with accessing a computer with dishonest intent and criminal damage for accessing X’s phone and deleting photos. However, Chung was later acquitted after the prosecution failed to prove dishonest intent.
Intent to pervert the course of justice
Deputy Director of Public Prosecutions Ivan Cheung argued on Thursday that the decision of the District Court in January 2023 that Lam had no intention of perverting the course of justice was “counterintuitive”, according to online newspaper The Witness reported.
Cheung presented the court with a video of the exchange, in which Lam said “what matters now is to delete the photos with the faces of the protesters”.
Although Lam verbally said he wanted to help X leave the scene, he may also have had an intention to pervert the course of justice, Cheung told the three appeal judges.
X had previously testified that Lam did not force him to delete the photos and that he agreed that the lawmaker was mediating the situation.
The prosecutor said the lower court erred in finding that Lam did not intend to pervert the course of justice.
However, Judge Derek Pang said Thursday it was impossible to conclude Lam had that intent, while Judge Judianna Barnes said Lam’s actions did not necessarily suggest intent.
In response to Cheung’s argument that the three defendants drew suspicion on themselves by being present at a protest, Pang said this was not a case of rioting or unlawful assembly, adding that he could not see how suspicion could be inferred.
Lawyer Hector Pun, representing Lam, noted that the lower court found no connection between Lam’s actions and any existing or potential legal proceedings. The prosecution at the trial also failed to specify any crime or legal procedure, he said.
Lam’s acquittal could not be overturned if the prosecution failed to prove whether he had interfered with legal proceedings or had any intention to do so, Pun said.
