(Minghui.org) The Wanghua District Court in Fushun City, Liaoning Province, tried Falun Gong practitioner Ms. Shang Liping on July 10, 2013. Although her lawyer made a strong defense on her behalf, the court nonetheless found her guilty of criminal intent. Ms. Shang is appealing the charge to a higher court.

Ms. Shang went to visit a fellow practitioner on April 15, 2012, when several police officers were searching the practitioner's home. Ms. Shang was arrested and searched. Several brochures about the persecution of Falun Gong were found, which became the basis of the charges against her.

According to Ms. Shang's lawyer, due to lack of witnesses and solid proof, the police forced her to plead guilty and sign a statement by torturing her with the tiger bench torture and threatening to remove her daughter from the university she was attending. The statement was the only evidence to substantiate Ms. Shang's “crime.” The lawyer concluded that cases involving Falun Gong practitioners shared one common feature. All the evidence was fabricated after the practitioners had been arrested, and they were tried based on trumped-up charges.

The lawyer pointed out that using torture to conduct an interrogation is illegal, and that practicing Falun Gong is legal according to China's laws. He also asked the court whether any individuals had witnessed Ms. Shang distributing the Falun Gong materials, and whether there was proof that she had printed the materials herself.

Neither the judge nor the prosecutor were able to respond, and the judge quickly called for an adjournment. The lawyer was surprised to find that his client was charged with criminal intent even though she had not been found guilty. Ms. Shang has appealed the judgment.

Because she refused to do the forced labor, Ms. Shang was brutally force-fed three times in the Nangou Detention Center in Fushun before the trial. She has lost about 60 pounds, and is suffering from poor health and unable to eat. Before being detained, Ms. Shang was the only breadwinner in the family, which includes her daughter, who needs to pay high school tuition, and her 70-year-old aunt.