(Minghui.org) Ms. Zhang Ailian is a Falun Gong practitioner from Baoji, Shaanxi Province. She was illegally arrested for her faith, detained beyond the legal time limit, and then put on trial on June 26, 2013. The authorities mislead her family and tried to force Ms. Zhang to plead guilty, even though she did not commit any crime.
Ms. Zhang was arrested approximately seven months prior to the trial for telling a passerby the facts about Falun Gong and giving him a pamphlet. The Baoji police subsequently ransacked her home and detained her at the Jintai Detention Center.
Ms. Zhang's lawyer communicated with the Jintai Procuratorate and the Jintai Court on many occasions. The attorney clearly stated that Ms. Zhang's actions and freedom of belief were supported by the constitution and requested the court to reject the case.
Instead of considering the law and the facts of the case, the court and procuratorate officials lied to Ms. Zhang's husband and convinced him to seek other representation for his wife – a lawyer appointed by them.
They also told him that his wife would be released if she admitted that she was guilty and expressed willingness to be “transformed.”
Ms. Zhang's husband called the defense lawyer right before the trial and said that his services were no longer needed. Following the demands of the court, he also wrote a letter to his wife, Ms. Zhang, and asked her to admit that she was guilty and that she would be willing to be “transformed.”
Ms. Zhang's lawyer met with Ms. Zhang after receiving the call from her husband.
The lawyer subsequently came to the court hearing and submitted a not-guilty plea for Ms. Zhang. He pointed out that it was illegal to use Article 300 of the criminal code to prosecute practitioners of Falun Gong.
Ms. Zhang's brother, Mr. Zhang Baowang, also a Falun Gong practitioner, was persecuted to death in prison. He had left some Falun Gong audio and video materials in Ms. Zhang's home. Police confiscated these materials and used them as “evidence” against Ms. Zhang in court.
The lawyer assigned by the court did not say a word during the trial and left early. Ms. Zhang's husband and family then realized that the authorities had deceived them.