What's wrong with this lawyer?!

Let's set aside other matters for now; I don't feel like taking on any tasks, just slacking off for a bit.

At that moment, the office door was pushed open, and Wang Qingqing walked in, "Brother Tang, someone outside is asking to see you."

As she spoke, a strange expression flashed across the girl's fair face, "It's, it's the family of the murder case defendant we discussed before."

It seemed too coincidental, but it was quite normal; if one lawyer couldn't solve the problem, naturally, they would turn to another well-known lawyer.

Upon hearing this, Old Tang said, "Well, that is a coincidence. Let them in; I happen to be free right now."

Wang Qingqing went out and soon returned with four people, two old and two young.

The old ones were Song Dakang and his wife, and the young ones were Song Dakang's son and daughter-in-law, essentially the closest relatives following the incident.

They wouldn't possibly involve an even younger child in such a matter; to a child, the thought of their mother killing their father was nothing short of a nightmare within a nightmare.

"Please take a seat, feel free. Qingqing, pour some water for them," Old Tang stood up and invited.

The few people glanced at the lawyer in front of them, their faces pale without a hint of color, but they appeared to be in good spirits, with one of them even holding a book to read.

Seeing the title of the book, Song Dakang suddenly felt the urge to leave. No reputable lawyer would read that sort of thing in their office.

But since they were already there, and Lawyer Tang was so welcoming, they decided to have a chat first.

Old Tang wasn't in a hurry; he waited for them to start drinking water before he opened the discussion, "Tell me what happened. What's the situation?"

Song Dakang's son was the first to speak, "Lawyer Tang, here's the thing, my sister, she..."

It was clear that the narrator's account was laced with plenty of emotion. Old Tang listened patiently, selectively taking notes on the key points.

At that moment, Song Dakang seemed to remember something, "Lawyer Tang, I have the judgment from the first trial here, would you find it useful?"

Old Tang: "..."

"Of course, it's useful. Hand it over; let me have a look."

The judgment was certainly valuable; the most important part of a judgment is the statements following "The court believes," as they essentially represent the court's position on the evidence and opinions of both parties.

Song Dakang pulled out the judgment, and Old Tang took it to check the date—it was decided the day before yesterday, still warm.

He began to read it carefully. In his heart, he had doubts about the case, wondering whether, in a case of domestic violence, the woman's retaliation should be considered as legitimate self-defense or excessive self-defense.

Excessive self-defense can lead to a mitigated punishment. Clearly, there was no self-defense in this case.

Looking closely, Old Tang noticed the issue. The judgment argued that the couple had a dispute; the woman believed the man was having an affair, neglecting the family and refusing to contribute financially to the children's upbringing.
Experience more tales on empire

Almost viewing the home merely as a place to sleep, qualifying the case as excessive self-defense under such circumstances was certainly not appropriate.

After all, if you carefully review the regulations on domestic violence, most are based on physical assault, whereas for psychological abuse and covert domestic abuse, the criteria are often very vague.

Furthermore, there was no reconciliation, but that was irrelevant as reconciliation depended on the other party's attitude; there was no help for it if they didn't agree.

Looking further, Old Tang found a key term in the judgment: after the incident, the defendant Song Siwen was "brought" to the police station.

In the legal field, every term has its significance. "Brought" implied that the defendant did not surrender voluntarily; even if she confessed to the crime after being brought in, it wouldn't count as a surrender.

What situation would then be considered a surrender? If criminals turn themselves in and confess their crimes willingly, that would be a surrender, eligible for a lighter or mitigated punishment.

Those who do not surrender on their own initiative but confess to other crimes that the authorities are unaware of also qualify as surrendering.

Because of this provision, many third-rate lawyers have come up with all sorts of dirty tricks, such as encouraging clients to surrender, only to find that the charges lumped together after surrendering result in a heavier sentence than not surrendering...

It's talking about you, Zhang Wei!

Those who do not surrender on their own initiative but confess to their crimes after being apprehended may receive a lighter punishment.

Therefore, Old Tang also saw in the judgment that Director Han's defense strategy was to argue for a mitigated punishment since the defendant confessed upon being apprehended.

Moreover, the prosecutor's office had taken a stance of leniency in sentencing for a guilty plea, further reducing the sentence; ultimately, the defendant received a base sentence of ten years.

Han Chengli had done all he could; ten years was the base sentence, but Old Tang still felt there was something unsatisfactory about the case.

After finishing the judgment, Old Tang looked up at the few people across from him and began, "I've read the judgment and have a general understanding of the situation."

"I have a question for you, what are you seeking in the second trial?"

If they expected him to get an acquittal, they could forget about it; after all, he was a lawyer, not a magician who could conjure up evidence from thin air.

The case details were also very clear: the husband had an affair and kept a mistress, inflicted psychological abuse, and in the midst of an argument, the wife grabbed a fruit knife and stabbed him, resulting in his death.

But wait, the man didn't die immediately; after all, it's not so easy to kill someone with a fruit knife.

He died in the hospital after unsuccessful resuscitation efforts. Medically speaking, death is different from what we commonly understand to be death.

Old Tang didn't elaborate; the case itself was straightforward, not meeting the criteria for intentional homicide. If the prosecutor pursued a charge of intentional homicide, it would never hold up in court.