IN THE SUP ME COURT OF HONG KONG
(APPELLATE JURISDICTION)
CRIMINAL APPEAL NO. 709 OF 1973
ANNLÃ TO XCR(74) 61
TSE YUNG TIM
LAM KVOK WAH @ LI LONG MING
and
THE QUEEN
Coram: Briggs, C.J., Huggins & McMullin, JJ.
1st Appellant
2nd Appellant
Respondent
JUDGMENT
Huggins, J.:
The two Appellants appeal against their convictions on one count of murder and two counts of wounding with intent to do
grievous bodily harm. The case arose out of a dispute concerning a girl who had been living with a man named SO Kuen. This girl had come under the control of a man named Tai Pau and SO Kuen sought to
obtain her release. To this end he assembled and armed a number of
men to call upon Tai Pau. It was in dispute whether the Appellants were from the start among this party of visitors or whether they joined it when it was on its way to the flat at 20 Yen Chow Street, 9th floor, where it was believed the girl could be found. However, it was common ground that when the party reached that flat the Appellants were with the others. The case for the prosecution was that an associate of those inside the flat was forcibly induced to approach the door with the object of having it opened by those in the flat and that when this ruse succeeded the whole party rushed in and attacked the occupants with melon knives. One of the occupants was killed and two received serious injuries. There was no evidence that
either Appellant struck the Deceased but there was evidence that the first Appellant struck both the other victims and that the second Appellant struck one of them. Their story was that they had gone merely "to reason with" Tai Pau and that they were attacked by those in the flat.
The first point argued was that the learned judge misdirected the jury when he said:
"If you thought that the blows which killed the deceased there were only two,