"Your Honor! We object! The plaintiff’s lawyer interrupted my client’s statement and forcefully interjected without your permission, disrupting our in-court statement and affecting our defense!" Gu Chen spoke.
Even though Zhao Yishan had finished speaking, Gu Chen still said this.
Who let Zhang Yifan interrupt?
Was it his turn to speak?
Presiding Judge Wang Zhong spoke: "Objection sustained, a warning to the plaintiff’s lawyer."
Zhang Yifan: "..."
Zhang Yifan’s face turned grim.
He hadn’t expected Lawyer Gu Chen to be so formidable.
Now he was curious to see how Gu Chen would defend Zhao Yishan!
No matter how he defended, Zhao Yishan couldn’t possibly be innocent!
Gu Chen said, "Your Honor, I request to ask my client a few questions."
Presiding Judge Wang Zhong: "Permission granted."
Gu Chen looked at Zhao Yishan and said, "When the robbers were robbing the bank, did you participate in the robbery or take any property?"
Zhao Yishan said, "No, I didn’t make a move the whole time."
Gu Chen said, "Are you certain you did not participate in the robbery? That you weren’t involved in any robbing activity?"
Zhao Yishan: "Lawyer Gu, I’m certain, I was in the corner the whole time, just standing there, when the robbers came to rob the bank, my mind went completely blank."
Gu Chen continued to ask: "So why didn’t the robbers take your money? They took everyone’s money, why not yours? Is your money worth less than others’?"
Zhao Yishan: "I don’t know, these robbers were in the bank for over an hour, they knew I was there to ask for money, they knew I was broke, I argued with the bank for a long time, so they didn’t ask me for money... I’m not clear on the exact reason either."
Gu Chen continued to ask: "Then why did you smash the bank counter?"
Zhao Yishan: "Because... because the bank wouldn’t give me my money, it was my father’s money, I was supposed to withdraw it, but they insisted I prove ’my father is my father,’ my father was about to pass away in the hospital; I was very angry, furious, and that’s why I smashed the bank counter in a fit of rage. This is my fault, and I am willing to compensate."
Gu Chen looked at the Presiding Judge and said, "Your Honor, we have completed our questioning, and I trust everyone has heard the chain of events clearly."
"I now apply to initiate a defense for my client!"
Presiding Judge Wang Zhong nodded and struck the gavel.
Bang!
Wang Zhong: "Defense is permitted."
Gu Chen looked at Xue Qingqing.
Xue Qingqing promptly took out some materials from the side.
Gu Chen looked at the materials and said, "This is the Jiangcheng Intermediate People’s Court’s judgment on Zhao Yishan’s case. In the first-instance judgment, for some reason, my client was convicted of robbery."
"Robbery refers to the crime committed with the intent of unlawful possession by using violence, coercion, or other methods against the owner or custodian of property to forcibly take public or private property."
"The so-called violence refers to the act of the offender striking or forcing the body of the victim. The violence in robbery refers to striking or forcing the victim’s body to eliminate the victim’s resistance, thereby seizing the victim’s property. The ’other methods’ here refer to methods, other than violence or coercion, that make the victim unaware of or unable to resist."
"So, I want to ask everyone a question."
"The surveillance footage from the bank must have been seen by everyone."
"Did my client Zhao Yishan use violence, coercion, or other methods to rob property? No, if not, then how can he be convicted of robbery?"
Gu Chen continued, "In the first-instance judgment, my client Zhao Yishan was found to be associated with the robbers because Zhao Yishan smashed the bank counter?"
"I believe this is also unreasonable, because the video clearly shows that Zhao Yishan was in a state of extreme anger when he smashed the counter. Can this alone establish that he was an accomplice to the robbers?"
"Zhao Yishan stood still, dazed, even tending to the wound on his hand; how could he have had the intent to rob? He is certainly not an accomplice to the robbers!"
"Here, there are police records stating that of the five robbers caught, all have confessed, and they all said they do not know Zhao Yishan, so Zhao Yishan cannot be an accomplice to the robbers!"
Gu Chen submitted the police records.
Indeed, all five people’s records indicated that they did not know Zhao Yishan.
This effectively ruled out the suspicion of Zhao Yishan being an accomplice.
Gu Chen has determined that these individuals were not accomplices to Zhao Yishan, and Zhao Yishan is not guilty of robbery.
"At this point, some people might still say that Zhao Yishan wanted to join in the robbery, maybe they didn’t know each other but could still become accomplices?"
"But that’s impossible!"
"Zhao Yishan smashing the counter and the robbers committing the robbery are entirely separate incidents."
"The counter was smashed out of anger."
"The robberies are acts of robbery."
"These are independent events, it was merely a coincidence."
"Therefore, my client has not committed the crime of robbery at all!"