Causing Death by Inflicting Injury: Causation and Sentencing
| Date | 01 April 2008 |
| DOI | 10.1350/jcla.2008.72.2.486 |
| Published date | 01 April 2008 |
| Author | Yu Gaoneng |
| Subject Matter | Supreme People's Court of the People's Republic of China |
Supreme People’s Court of the
People’s Republic of China
Causing Death by Inflicting Injury: Causation and
Sentencing
Judgment of 10 January 2005, Case No. criminal review 239/2004
Judgment of 14 November 2006, Case No. criminal review 121/2006
Keywords Offences against the person; Thin-skull rule; Sentencing;
Seriousness
In these two cases, the Supreme People’s Court took issue with senten-
cing the offenders in question to a punishment which was less than the
prescribed punishment in cases involving death caused by intentionally
inflicting injury upon another person, where review by the Supreme
People’s Court is a mandatory procedure.
In Case No. 239/2004, the defendant threw clods and bricks at the
victim who was on a ladder in a yard and had had a quarrel with him.
The victim fell from the ladder and died instantly. The defendant was
convicted in November 2003 of causing the death of another person by
inflicting injury and sentenced to 10 years’ imprisonment. By appealing
to the High Court of Hebei Province, his sentence was reduced to three
years’ imprisonment.
In Case No. 121/2006, the defendant beat the victim with a wooden
stick causing some soft tissue contusions to the arm and shoulder of the
victim. The victim died in hospital the next day during emergency
treatment. Medical evidence showed that the victim had several pre-
existing serious diseases such as cirrhosis, coronary heart disease, and an
enlarged spleen, and that the direct cause of death was shock induced by
bleeding when the peritoneum connected to the liver was torn. He was
convicted of causing the death of another person by inflicting injury and
sentenced to six years’ imprisonment. No appeal was lodged.
According to Article 234 of the Criminal Law of the People’s Republic
of China, there are three sentence levels for the offence of intentionally
inflicting injury upon another person:
1. three years’ imprisonment, criminal detention or public surveil-
lance for inflicting injury (level 1);
2. from 3 to 10 years’ imprisonment for causing severe injury
(level 2);
3. over 10 years’ imprisonment, life imprisonment or death penalty
for causing death by injury (level 3).
H
ELD
,
AFFIRMING BOTH CONVICTIONS AND SENTENCES
. The reason
given by the court for its decision in Case No. 239/2004 was that the
defendant’s intent was not vicious, the nature of injury was common
and the circumstances were minor. While in Case No. 121/2006, the
113The Journal of Criminal Law (2008) 72 JCL 113–116
doi:1350/jcla.2008.72.2.486
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