Hong Kong court jails social worker for over 3½ years in retrial on rioting
Jackie Chen gets 10-month discount in acknowledgement of lengthy legal proceedings
A Hong Kong court has jailed a social worker for three years and nine months for rioting in a 2019 anti-government protest, following a retrial, with the judge shaving off 10 months because of the lengthy legal proceedings.
Deputy District Judge May Chung Ming-sun said on Wednesday that Jackie Chen Hung-sau, 48, was present with multiple microphones and a loudspeaker on Hennessy Road and Luard Road in Wan Chai on the night of August 31, 2019, showing her intent to participate in the riot.
She was among the estimated 500 people gathered in the area, with some throwing petrol bombs and glass bottles at police officers, as well as shouting slogans and blocking roads.
In September 2020, the veteran social worker was acquitted midway through the original trial after a judge found she had no case to answer. Three other defendants in the same case were also found not guilty.
But the Department of Justice appealed against their acquittals the following year and won the appeal in 2023, resulting in the four being brought back to court for a retrial last year.
Chen pleaded not guilty during the retrial last year, while the other three – tutor Lai Pui-ki, programmer Chung Ka-nang and chef Jason Gung Tsz Shun – admitted to a count of rioting.