A 45-second short video has led to the detention of a woman named Luo Yaohuan in Huizhou, Guangdong for 608 days. After going through two rounds of guilty verdicts in the first trial and two rounds of retrials in the second trial, the prosecutor eventually withdrew the case due to lack of evidence. Recently, the plight of this woman, who graduated with a bachelor’s degree in law, has attracted attention.
According to a report by “Cover News” on September 8, Luo Yaohuan told their reporter that in May 2021, the street office in Danshui, Huiyang District, Huizhou City, where she lived, built sewage treatment facilities on the land they were farming under the pretext of “improving the rural living environment.”
During the construction process, the bulldozer buried the crops. Luo Yaohuan stated that they had been farming there for over 30 years. Despite multiple attempts by her and her family to stop the construction, her grandfather was injured in the process.
In the early hours of September 3, 2022, a 45-second short video appeared on a video platform. The video showed construction machinery at work and people pushing each other. Subsequently, this video quickly went viral. 11 days later, at the age of 37, she was criminally detained and arrested on charges of provocation and causing trouble.
The Huiyang District Procuratorate alleged that Luo Yaohuan had released false videos on the video platform, inciting trouble and causing serious public disorder. Luo Yaohuan consistently argued that she did not produce or release the video in question, and the account that posted the video was not registered to her. However, these defense arguments were not accepted by the court in both the first and second trials.
After nearly 4 years of legal battles and experiencing two rounds of guilty verdicts in the first trial and two rounds of retrials in the second trial, the core of the controversy always revolved around the “lack of conclusive evidence.” During this period, Luo Yaohuan was detained for 608 days.
In May of this year, the Huiyang District Procuratorate finally withdrew the prosecution on the grounds that “the existing evidence is insufficient to prove that Luo Yaohuan released false videos.”
In July, the Huiyang District Court made a decision on national compensation, awarding a total of 437,220.70 yuan (RMB) to Luo Yaohuan, including 301,531.52 yuan for personal freedom compensation and 135,689.18 yuan for mental distress compensation. At the same time, the court eliminated the impact on her, restored her reputation, and issued a formal apology.
The court stated in the compensation decision that Luo Yaohuan was detained for 608 days, meeting the statutory condition of “causing serious consequences”; due to her son’s serious depression and other psychological disorders after his mother was taken away and his subsequent fight with the police, his situation was also considered when determining the mental distress compensation.
Subsequently, Luo Yaohuan’s experience has sparked online attention.
Netizens expressed their views, questioning why she was detained for 600 days if even if she had posted the video, how it constituted provocation and causing trouble. They raised concerns about the prolonged detention without clear criminal charges.
They also criticized the misuse of the charge of provocation and causing trouble and called for accountability for those responsible for the injustice. Some users pointed out the need for clearer boundaries in such criminal cases and questioned the fairness of the legal system.
This case has brought to light the need for legal reforms and accountability for those involved in flawed judicial decisions. The public is calling for a review of the conduct of the judges and prosecutors involved.