Man freed after 23 years, name cleared

A man in Northeast China who has been behind bars for 23 years for murder had his name cleared on Friday as a final retrial found the evidence insufficient to prove his conviction.

The Jilin High People's Court overturned an original ruling in which Jin Zhehong, 50, was given a suspended death sentence, and announced him innocent.

"I've been waiting for this result since I was arrested, because I know I didn't do it," said Jin, who walked out of the court with the help of two walking sticks after hearing the acquittal, accompanied by his son and lawyer.

"My father was a soldier who had fought for the founding of New China … and my mother died with regret because I was seen as a murderer," he said. "What I want to do most now is to go to their graves and tell them their son was proved innocent today."

Li Jinxing, the lawyer, said Jin finally won his freedom after repeated appeals. "He can go back home now, cleared," he said.

The case dates back to Sept 29, 1995, when a woman's body was found near a railway track in Shuanghe township, Yongji county. Several days later, Jin, then 27, was named as the suspect and detained.

In November 1996, Jin was sentenced to death with a two-year reprieve for the crime of intentional homicide by the Jilin Intermediate People's Court.

Jin appealed, so the provincial high people's court sent the case back to the lower court for retrial a year later. The intermediate court, however, upheld the ruling.

In 1998, the high people's court returned the case again, ordering the lower court to retry it, but the ruling remained the same. On Aug 23, 2000, the high people's court approved the ruling.

In those years, Jin and his family continuously appealed, "as he never lost hope and believed he could wait for the day to prove himself innocent", said Li, the lawyer.

In 2014, the high people's court said it could consider reviewing the case once again due to Jin's repeated appeals and media reports on a possible forced confession.

This March, the court decided to retry the case. After rehearing the case on Oct 24, the court said it was uncertain whether Jin had the time, tools and motivation to do the killing, "so the chain of evidence in the case was not complete to prove his conviction".

On Friday, the court also informed Jin and his lawyer that they are entitled to apply for state compensation for the wrongful conviction.

Li, the lawyer, told China Daily he had suggested that Jin conduct a physical check before making the decision.

"He (Jin) is in poor condition with several diseases, such as having had a stroke and hypertension, so he urgently needs a rest before considering the compensation," Li said.

The judgment showed the country's determination to uphold justice and the rule of law, "but if we can provide a fast appeal system for such cases, the innocent may not wait for such a long time in prison", the lawyer said.