Death Row Inmate Awaiting Exoneration – Press Conference on the Ninth Extraordinary Appeal for Hsieh Chih-hung

On the 11th of this month, the Control Yuan released an investigation report on the Hsieh Chih-hung case, hoping that judicial authorities would reopen the investigation, but it has yet to receive any response from the judicial department. This morning at 10:00, defense attorneys Yeh Chien-ting, Tu Hsin-cheng, and Huang Chih-hao, alongside supporting organizations, held a brief press conference at the entrance of the Supreme Prosecutors Office to issue a statement regarding the Control Yuan's report and the Hsieh Chih-hung case, while also submitting the petition for the ninth extraordinary appeal to the Supreme Prosecutors Office.

Attorney Tu Hsin-cheng: After Waiting Eighteen Years, This Is the First Official Report Affirming Hsieh Chih-hung's Innocence

Attorney Tu Hsin-cheng

Attorney Tu Hsin-cheng, who has long represented Hsieh Chih-hung, stated that the Control Yuan report indicates flaws in the scientific evidence of this case, a lack of physical evidence, and suspected torture in Hsieh Chih-hung's confession. Furthermore, the content of his confession and the accusations made by co-defendant Kuo Chun-wei entirely contradicted the conditions at the crime scene and the forensic report. This demonstrates that the court's verdict finding Hsieh Chih-hung guilty of murder not only lacked evidence but also suffered from illegalities such as contradictory reasoning and failure to investigate crucial evidence.

Attorney Tu Hsin-cheng noted that Hsieh Chih-hung has been deprived of his liberty for eighteen years. This Control Yuan report is, for him, "the first official report affirming Hsieh Chih-hung's innocence after eighteen years of waiting," which carries extraordinary significance. In recent years, prosecution authorities have achieved remarkable results in filing extraordinary appeals and retrials for the benefit of defendants. He looks forward to the Prosecutor-General continuing to uphold this spirit to help Hsieh Chih-hung achieve exoneration at an early date.

Attorney Huang Chih-hao: The Hsieh Chih-hung Case Tells Us How Easy It Is to Fabricate a Miscarriage of Justice in Taiwan

Attorney Huang Chih-hao

Attorney Huang Chih-hao, one of the pro bono attorneys for the Hsieh Chih-hung case, stated that what this case tells us is just how easy it is to fabricate a miscarriage of justice in Taiwan—through unreliable lie detector reports and the accusations of a co-defendant. Although a co-defendant's testimony is not necessarily inadmissible as evidence, in Hsieh Chih-hung's case, the inconsistencies in the statements of the other defendant, Kuo Chun-wei, had never been properly addressed by investigative authorities over the past eighteen years. Attorney Huang Chih-hao expressed his hope that Prosecutor-General Chiang Hui-min can file an extraordinary appeal for Hsieh Chih-hung, allowing him to "become the seventh death row inmate in Taiwan to be exonerated from a wrongful conviction."

Attorney Yeh Chien-ting: We Hope the Prosecutor-General Sees That the Hsieh Chih-hung Case Can Be Described as the Sum Total of All Miscarriage Factors

Attorney Yeh Chien-ting / Chairperson of the Taiwan Association for Innocence and Pro Bono Defense Attorney for the Hsieh Case

Attorney Yeh Chien-ting, Chairperson of the Taiwan Association for Innocence and pro bono defense attorney for the Hsieh case, stated that Hsieh Chih-hung's case can be described as the sum total of all factors leading to wrongful judgments: every miscarriage factor involves involuntary confessions, misinterpretations of scientific evidence, and the court's indifference to evidence favorable to the defendant. Attorney Yeh also pointed out that the Hsieh case reveals another common problem in wrongful convictions—evidence or audio recordings favorable to the defendant tend to "conveniently go missing" or "conveniently fail to be recorded." The major flaws during the investigation of the entire case are self-evident.

Attorney Yeh Chien-ting concluded by stating that today marks the 6,603rd day of Hsieh Chih-hung's deprivation of liberty. We hope the Prosecutor-General can file an extraordinary appeal for Hsieh Chih-hung and suspend his punishment, allowing Hsieh Chih-hung to leave death row as soon as possible.

Secretary-General Chiu I-ling: The Prosecutor-General Should Promptly File Extraordinary Appeals for Cases Involving Procedural Flaws and Potential Miscarriages of Justice

Chiu I-ling, Secretary-General of the Taiwan Association for Human Rights

Chiu I-ling, Secretary-General of the Taiwan Association for Human Rights, stated that whether looking at the Control Yuan's investigation report or the judge's failure to recuse themselves in the retrial, both repeatedly highlight the procedural flaws in the Hsieh Chih-hung case. These flaws not only seriously violate the right to a fair trial under the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, but also breach the recusal provisions within Taiwan's Code of Criminal Procedure. Chiu I-ling further urged that the Prosecutor-General should promptly file extraordinary appeals for cases bearing such procedural flaws and potential miscarriages of justice, in order to uphold the basic rights of the people and prevent these cases from "becoming sacrifices under public opinion pressure."

Attorney Chen Yu-ting: Appraisal Reports of Varying Quality Have All Found Their Way into the Court

Attorney Chen Yu-ting of the Judicial Reform Foundation

Attorney Chen Yu-ting of the Judicial Reform Foundation stated that the Hsieh Chih-hung case involves many serious issues. Among them, the lie detector test highlights the current lack of standardized guidelines for scientific appraisals in Taiwan, to the extent that "appraisal reports of varying quality have all found their way into the court." Without solid fact-finding proceedings and the ability to distinguish what constitutes robust scientific evidence, wrongful convictions are naturally very likely to occur. Attorney Chen Yu-ting hopes that the Prosecutor-General can quickly seek extraordinary relief for Hsieh Chih-hung and re-examine appraisals from the past that may have been problematic, thereby rescuing more potential wrongful convictions.

Liu Lu-na: Do Not Let Erroneous or Unfair Trials Become Executioners

Liu Lu-na, Member and Volunteer of the Amnesty International Tainan Group

Liu Lu-na of the Amnesty International Tainan Group said that ever since participating in the rescue campaign for Hsieh Chih-hung, "even we non-legal professionals could clearly see the numerous unreasonable aspects and doubts in the process of Hsieh's judgment." This prompted them to stand up and demand that we "do not let erroneous or unfair trials become executioners." Liu Lu-na expressed her belief that a fair trial is a vital foundation for Taiwan's judicial reform, and granting Hsieh Chih-hung an opportunity to receive a fair trial once again will also enhance public confidence in the judicial system.

Cheng Hsing-tse, Exonerated Death Row Wrongful Conviction Victim: I Hope the Judiciary Can Also Give Hsieh Chih-hung a Chance for a Retrial!

Cheng Hsing-tse, Exonerated Death Row Wrongful Conviction Victim

Finally, Cheng Hsing-tse, who endured 14 years of wrongful imprisonment on death row, also attended today to show his support for Hsieh Chih-hung. He stated, "Once a death sentence is carried out, it cannot be reversed." Before he was granted the opportunity for a retrial, the Control Yuan had also issued an investigation report for his case. Cheng Hsing-tse said that since the Control Yuan has now issued an investigation report for the Hsieh Chih-hung case and found doubts in it, he very much "hopes the judiciary can also give Hsieh Chih-hung a chance for a retrial!"

Organizers

Taiwan Alliance to End the Death Penalty
Taiwan Association for Innocence
Criminal Human Rights Protection Committee of the Tainan Bar Association
Taiwan Association for Human Rights
Amnesty International Tainan Group
Judicial Reform Foundation