Author of this article: Li YaoRecently,theserum illegal business case defended by Beijing lawyerLi Yao, after two and a half years of actual punishment in the first instance, remand in the second instance, and change of jurisdiction in the first instance of retrial, successfully obtained an acquittal result for the client in the case of no prosecution if there was doubt, and no prosecution in the same case, achieving acquittal in the entire case. At this point, the haze that has been cast on the parties since the criminal case was filed in 2021 has finally been cleared away.
1. Introduction to the case
The party involved in this case is a staff member of a medical institution. He was accused of illegally handling medical waste and constituting the crime of illegal business because he provided the remaining serum after testing to some pharmaceutical companies for a fee for product quality control. This move is actually very common in medical institutions, and even some well-known tertiary hospitals have already acquiesced in its existence. In the current situation where domestic pharmaceutical companies and medical research institutions generally have no available serum for product quality control, it has also promoted the development of the industry to a certain extent.
The background of this case is very special. Related cases during the COVID-19 prevention and control period involved national biosecurity, and clues to this case were discovered during the investigation of the case. After approval by the Ministry of Public Security, the Tangshan Road North District Public Security Bureau opened the case as a national security case, specifically investigating the crime of illegal collection of human genetic resources, which was later changed to the crime of illegal business operations.
- Case handling strategy**The defense of this case faces three mountains that need to be overcome:**First, there are national biosecurity background factors; second, the Ministry of Public Security forwarded clues; third, related cases have been judged as illegal business crimes. The above makes it difficult to defend the case, and it also makes it difficult for judicial staff to reach a very firm conclusion of innocence on the issue of guilt and innocence.
In fact, the lines of innocence in this case are very clear, which also established the final attribution of innocence. In communicating with the judicial authorities, the defender emphasized:
**First, in terms of substantive judgment,**this case is completely decoupled from related projects, has no social harm, and lacks the core of conviction; **Second, judging from the form,**this case does not meet the elements of the crime of illegal business operations. The serum involved in the case is not medical waste. In the absence of clear laws and administrative regulations to impose criminal sanctions, it should not be treated as a crime; **Third, from the perspective of legal punishment and prohibition of entry and exit,**even if the serum involved in the case is considered to be medical waste, the "Judicial Interpretation of Handling Criminal Cases of Environmental Pollution", "Minutes of the Symposium on Handling Criminal Cases of Environmental Pollution", the cases in the case database of the People's Court, and the typical cases of the Supreme People's Procuratorate all clearly indicate that there is no specific result of environmental pollution and should not be punished as an illegal business crime. **Fourthly, from the perspective of the principle of equality,**some witnesses in the same case behaved the same as the parties involved. To avoid double standards in the same case, they should all be treated as innocent. 3. Case Result
Although the first instance of this case failed to successfully stop the criminal cycle and the parties were still sentenced to severe penalties, during the second instance, through unremitting efforts in reporting multiple materials, the case was given a favorable opportunity to be remanded for retrial. During the retrial, the defender and the judge held multiple exchanges of opinions before and after the trial, fully elaborating on the case’s lack of social harm and the factual and legal issues facing the conviction, which won the respect and recognition of the judge. With the judicial goodwill released by the retrial collegial panel, the case was designated to be heard by the Qian'an Municipal People's Court. Just as the name Qian'an implies, if you move, you will be safe, and the case will not be prosecuted.
The defender took over the defense before the first trial in January 2024, which lasted for two and a half years. During this period, he always adhered to the defense strategy of innocence in the entire case and submitted multiple opinions to the presidents of the two-level courts and members of the trial committee in the form of innocence case reflection materials. He also thanked the Tangshan two-level judicial system for their goodwill in this case. This case may not be a major or important case, and the aspects involved are not complicated, but there is no doubt that the handling of this case has been related to the life direction of the four defendants and the future of many families related to it. Tangshan is a heroic city that has given birth to the great spirit of a great era and is still shining brightly today. Thanks to the Lubei Court and the Qian'an Procuratorate for rescuing the defendants who have been immersed in criminal justice for nearly four years and bringing this case to an end.
Lawyer Profile
Lawyer Li Yao
Master of Laws from Peking University, an off-campus lecturer at Peking University, and a director of the Criminal Professional Committee of Jingshi Law Firm (National), focusing on dispute resolution and economic crime defense in the field of construction projects.