Prosecutors told to ignore evidence illegally collected

Prosecutors will strictly exclude evidence obtained through illegal means such as torture to prevent wrongful convictions and protect people's rights, the Supreme People's Procuratorate said on Monday.

The top procuratorate issued a revised version of the Rules for Criminal Procedure of the People's Procuratorate on Monday to adapt to new circumstances since its last revision in 2012.

"The revised rules embody the emphasis on the protection of human rights and make citizens feel justice in each case," said Tong Jianming, deputy procurator-general of the Supreme People's Procuratorate.

The rules stipulate that prosecutors should verify the legitimacy of interrogations in major cases and drop any evidence that is found to be collected through torture.

The scope of illegal evidence is clarified in the new version.

Confessions of suspects collected by illegal means shall be excluded, including those causing them unbearable pain by the use of violence, such as beating, illegal use of tools, or corporal punishment.

The illegal means of gaining evidence also include restricting personal freedom by illegal detainment and threatening by undermining suspects' relatives' rights, according to the rules.

Procuratorial organs will strictly restrict the approval of extensions of detention to prompt police to actively investigate cases.

If they find police have failed to start an effective investigation as a detention period nears its end, they can reject the police request to extend detention.

Tong said the rules also stipulate that when procuratorial organs make the decision not to approve an arrest because the suspect is innocent, they should also request and supervise the investigation organs to withdraw the case or terminate the investigation of the person.

Tong said the revision also emphasizes the protection of minors when they are involved in cases as suspects, victims or witnesses.

He said that in seeking evidence from victims who are minors, the one-time rule should be adopted, that is, trying to ask them all questions in one session to avoid hurting them again and to increase efficiency.

From January to November, procuratorial organs arrested 29,000 juvenile suspects, up 7.6 percent year-on-year.

A total of 44,000 suspects were arrested for infringing on the rights of minors, up 19.4 percent, with an increase in cases of sexual assault against minors, according to the Supreme People's Procuratorate.