On August 31, 2019, a riot occurred in Wan Chai, involving law student Tong Ka-yan, who was previously found not guilty of riot and possession of offensive weapons and was awarded legal costs. Later, the Court of Appeal ruled in favor of the Department of Justice, overturning the not guilty verdict for the riot charge and remitting the case for retrial. The case was heard yesterday (July 22) in the District Court, where the judge granted the defense's request to postpone the case until September 4 for the defendant to consider her response. The defendant continues to be granted bail under the original conditions.
At the time of the incident, the 21-year-old defendant, who identified as a student, was charged with participating in the riot and possessing offensive weapons in a public place near Hennessy Road in Wan Chai. The original trial judge, Edward Lee Chun-man, ruled that both charges were not proven. The Department of Justice appealed both charges, and the Court of Appeal questioned whether the original trial considered the cumulative effect of various environmental evidence, ruling in favor of the Department of Justice regarding the riot charge and remitting the case for reconsideration.
The defendant subsequently applied for a certificate to appeal to the Court of Final Appeal, but the request was denied by the Court of Appeal. She then directly applied for permission to appeal to the Court of Final Appeal, which was also denied by the Appeal Committee last Wednesday (July 16).
The defense indicated that, in light of the latest developments in the Court of Final Appeal's decision, they requested to postpone the case for the defendant to consider her response. The prosecution did not oppose the postponement. Judge Justin Ko King-sau postponed the case until September 4 for further proceedings and reserved a date of January 5 next year for the original trial judge to handle the case.
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