Hong Kong Case Law: Decisions & Judgments

Topic

Pre-trial detention

Legal area

Court

24 Feb 2021

HKSAR v. CHOI HOI MING

Citation

[2021] HKCFI 404
Court

Court of First Instance
Case number

HCCP45/2021

Given the seriousness of the conspiracy offence and the strength of the circumstantial evidence (including the applicant's recorded admissions, matching circuit diagrams and supporting digital communications), the court was satisfied there were substantial grounds for believing the applicant would fail to surrender to custody; therefore bail was properly refused and the applicant remanded in custody.
9 Feb 2021

HKSAR v. LAI CHEE YING (黎智英)

Citation

[2021] HKCFA 3
Court

Court of Final Appeal
Case number

FACC1/2021

The Court allowed the appeal and set aside the bail granted because Alex Lee J misconstrued NSL 42(2) by treating it as equivalent to the CPO discretionary ground for withholding bail; NSL 42(2) creates a more stringent 'no bail unless' threshold that must be applied as a judicial evaluative exercise (not by imposing a formal burden of proof), bail conditions may be considered in that evaluation, and the Court has no jurisdiction to strike down NSL provisions as incompatible with the Basic Law or ICCPR.
7 Feb 2017

HKSAR v. CHAN YIU SHING AND OTHERS

Citation

[2018] HKCFI 306
Court

Court of First Instance
Case number

HCCC41/2016

Bail was refused because, despite lengthy pre-trial custody and evidence of good character, the seriousness of the allegations and the state and strength of the prosecution evidence created an unacceptable risk that the defendant would not attend court if released even under stringent conditions.
7 Oct 1993

ATTORNEY GENERAL V. PHAM THI XA

Citation

ATTORNEY GENERAL V. PHAM THI XA
Court

Court of First Instance
Case number

HCMP3371/1993

The court exercised its discretion under s32(4)(b) to order continued detention of 20 respondents for a period not exceeding 21 days from 8 October 1993, holding that the public interest in ensuring the availability of relevant evidence at a major criminal trial outweighed the respondents' personal interests given a reasonable prospect they would be able to give evidence within the limited period.
16 Oct 1992

THE QUEEN v. LAU KWOK HUNG

Citation

THE QUEEN v. LAU KWOK HUNG
Court

Court of First Instance
Case number

HCMP1703/1991

The judge found that the cumulative delay (17 months and an additional postponement) violated the appellant's right under Article 5(3) of the Bill of Rights; absent new evidence of risk of interference or absconding and having weighed the length of pre-trial custody against likely sentence, the public interest did not outweigh the right to liberty, and bail should be granted with strict financial conditions.
11 Jul 1991

RE SOUTH KOWLOON MAGISTRACY COURT Criminal Case No K-4535 of 1991

Citation

RE SOUTH KOWLOON MAGISTRACY COURT Criminal Case No K-4535 of 1991
Court

Court of First Instance
Case number

HCMP1703/1991

Although Article 5(3) creates a presumption in favour of bail when trial within a reasonable time cannot be secured, the court must balance that presumption against cogent evidence on (1) the nature of the offence, (2) danger to the public, and (3) prejudice to the trial process; on the evidence in this case those factors justified refusal of bail and the applicant must remain in custody.
25 Mar 1971

AU WAI-KEUNG v. THE QUEEN

Citation

AU WAI-KEUNG v. THE QUEEN
Court

Court of First Instance
Case number

HCMP58/1971

Bail was refused because the uncontradicted threats and the applicant’s conduct at the alleged robbery produced a distinct possibility bordering on probability of interference with the complainant; the judge concluded that conditions available under s.13A would not reliably prevent such interference and therefore, in the interests of justice, the applicant must be detained pending trial.

Hong Kong Case Law

HKSAR v. CHOI HOI MING

HKSAR v. LAI CHEE YING (黎智英)

HKSAR v. CHAN YIU SHING AND OTHERS

ATTORNEY GENERAL V. PHAM THI XA

THE QUEEN v. LAU KWOK HUNG

RE SOUTH KOWLOON MAGISTRACY COURT Criminal Case No K-4535 of 1991

AU WAI-KEUNG v. THE QUEEN