Trial of IT executives puts judges to the test

The heated discussion both online and in the print media about the trial of four former executives of Shenzhen QVOD Technology Co, an online video service company, which was broadcast live on Thursday and Friday, has exerted pressure on the judges.

But the trial, in which the defendants did a good job of pleading not guilty of the charge of spreading pornographic content with their own software technology, has made this case a very important one in many ways.

As far as procedural justice is concerned, the argument the defendant made warrants further investigation and proper evaluation of the evidence. If the evidence the prosecutors collected is not sound enough or the way it was collected did not follow proper legal procedure, the prosecutors need to do a lot more to prevent the judges from ruling a mistrial.