Court in recess: the advantage was mine

At the judges' bench.

By this stage of the trial.

Lin Youping leafed through the documents, having reached a tentative decision on the verdict.

Bang, bang!

"The prosecution has no objections. The court will now recess for half an hour. Proceedings will resume in thirty minutes."

The gavel fell.

The presiding judge and the two other judges rose and left their seats.

The court entered recess.

In the courtroom, Su Bai let out a long breath.

Once the half-hour recess ended, they would most likely move on to the final defense arguments.

That meant the final defense arguments were only half an hour away.

Once those arguments and the closing statements were finished, the court might announce its verdict on the spot.

A death penalty case!

So fucking exhausting!

Su Bai took a bottle of mineral water from his briefcase, unscrewed the cap, and took a sip. As the water slid smoothly down his throat, he felt much more relaxed.

Beside him, Li Xuezhen sorted through the documents, her gaze drifting toward Su Bai from time to time.

As things stood, the advantage was ours.

If we won this trial...

Then I'd be an intern lawyer with three wins out of three during my internship.

What a wonderful feeling.

At the opposing party's table.

The other lawyer was talking with Lü Wei.

"Mr. Lü, the proceedings are looking very unfavorable for our side right now."

Lü Wei took a deep breath. Once he had calmed himself, he rubbed between his brows, his square face creasing into a frown.

"I know. Their lawyer is a real courtroom schemer. He led me straight into his trap."

"Unless something unexpected happens, the verdict will most likely be excessive self-defense."

"We just don't know what sentence that will carry."

As for that outcome.

To be honest, Lü Wei could not accept it.

It went against his principles and his conception of procedural justice.

But.

His inability to accept it would not affect the court's proper adjudication.

Fortunately, he still had one last chance.

The defense arguments and closing statements after the recess were crucial final submissions. They would determine whether he could sway the judges. If he presented them well, there might still be a sliver of hope.

My last chance...

Lü Wei repeated those words silently.

Outside the courtroom, the live broadcast of the trial stopped showing footage during the recess.

In Luo Daxiang's livestream, viewers eagerly speculated about the outcome.

"Fuck! They're taking a recess! But watching the prosecution get hammered was so satisfying! What a rush! I saw Mr. Lü's face practically change color from anger!"

"Exactly! The appellant's lawyer led the prosecution's lawyer into a trap, then delivered the killing blow! That was thrilling!"

"That was seriously satisfying! Loved it! If Teacher Luo hadn't disabled donations, I wouldn't have been able to resist sending one!"

"Hahaha, amazing! Absolutely amazing!"

"Teacher Luo, the court's in recess! Give us a recap!"

"Yeah, Teacher Luo, break it down for us. We want to know who's going to win!"

"I'm sure it'll be the appellant. I'll bet ten cents! Can't afford any more than that! I'm dirt poor."

"I'll bet fifteen cents!"

"Hahaha, I'll bet five!"

Watching the comments drift increasingly off-topic, Luo Daxiang smiled and teased them.

"All right, stop betting. Gambling in my livestream-are you trying to get me locked up? That's criminal!"

Jokes aside.

Luo Daxiang continued, "Since the court is in recess, let's go back over the whole trial."

"We don't need to repeat what we already covered earlier."

"You all watched the arguments back and forth in the middle, so we can skip those too."

"When you get down to it, there really isn't much left to say, is there?"

Luo Daxiang cracked that joke with a smile, then continued.

"I know you all want to know whether this case can be won.

"The most important question is whether it can be ruled lawful self-defense, but I can't say for certain."

"Based on the proceedings so far, excessive self-defense is the likelier outcome. Lawful self-defense isn't impossible, but the chances are slim. As for the specific reasons, you all know them, so I won't go into those."

To have brought the trial this far.

Su Bai had already delivered an impressive performance.

At the very least, it showed that he had judged Su Bai correctly. Choosing the White Jun Law Firm had been the right decision.

With excessive self-defense, Qi Feng would receive a fixed-term prison sentence at most. Compared with the death penalty, that already counted as a win.

Still...

As for whether they could secure a ruling of lawful self-defense.

Luo Daxiang could not help harboring a faint hope.

Inside the Collegial Panel's deliberation room.

The three members of the Collegial Panel-Lin Youping, Fang Mei, and Zhu Xiong-discussed Qi Feng's case.

Lin Youping organized the evidence and case documents submitted by the appellant and the prosecution, then raised his head slightly to look at Fang Mei and Zhu Xiong across from him.

"What are your views on this case?"

As one of the judges, Zhu Xiong had spent many years at the Northern Capital Higher People's Court and could be considered a competent, seasoned member of the judiciary. He offered his view.

"Based on the statements and evidence submitted by the appellant, meaning Qi Feng's side.

"This case should be classified as excessive self-defense.

"But when deciding how much to reduce the sentence, we need to consider the fact that Qi Feng did, after all, cause serious casualties."

Fang Mei voiced her agreement. "Yes. There's certainly no dispute over excessive self-defense."

Then she changed tack.

"But ruling this case lawful self-defense isn't out of the question either."

"How so? Qi Feng clearly exceeded the necessary limits in this case and caused two deaths. Wouldn't lawful self-defense be an inappropriate ruling?"

Zhu Xiong frowned slightly.

Fang Mei elaborated. "It would be somewhat inappropriate, but under the provisions governing lawful self-defense, those two people were carrying out a violent attack. In terms of his subjective intent, he was indeed defending himself. It's just that determining the limits is genuinely difficult."

"Besides, we're discussing it, aren't we? I'm only putting forward my view for consideration."

Zhu Xiong.

He nodded slightly and looked at Lin Youping.

Lin Youping was the presiding judge, as well as the deputy president of the Northern Capital court.

Their discussion merely offered recommendations. The actual authority to determine the verdict rested with Lin Youping.

The precise ruling still depended on what Lin Youping had in mind.

After listening to Fang Mei and Zhu Xiong, Lin Youping nodded slightly.

"You both agree that Qi Feng's actions did not constitute intentional injury, correct?"

"The main points of disagreement are sentencing, lawful self-defense, and excessive self-defense."

"But fundamentally, it still comes down to lawful self-defense versus excessive self-defense."

"Those two points..."

Lin Youping placed both hands on his thighs and stood. "On those two points, let's hear what the appellant's lawyer has to say."

After forming a rough assessment in his mind.

Zhu Xiong and Fang Mei nodded without saying anything more.

When opinions remained divided, first hearing what the defense lawyer had to say was a reasonable way forward.

(End of chapter)