The People v. Nie Shubin (Intentional Homicide and Rape)—Fact-Finding and Application of Law in Criminal Retrial Procedure

Abstract

In a criminal retrial case, if there in no sufficient evidence found in the original trial court to determine such elements as the time of the victim’s death and the cause of death, the source of the instruments for committing the homicide, and the time of committing crime, there are doubts as to the authenticity, legality of the guilty confessions, and it is also dubious whether the corpus delicti are committed by others, and the standard of proof of certainty and sufficiency has not yet met due to the incomplete chain of evidence proving the accused’s guilt. If so, the accused shall be found innocent of intentional homicide and rape of woman in accordance with law on the ground that the facts are unclear and the evidence is not reliable and sufficient.

The retrial collegial bench: Hu Yunteng, Xia Daohu, Yu Zhengping, Guan Yingshi, Luo Zhiyong (Translated by: Zheng Daxuan; Proofread by: Zhang Hongsheng).