TNAG-0488-FCO40-553-Review-of-death-sentence-in-Hong-Kong-1974 — Page 63

BETWEEN

ANNEX 10 XCR(74) 163

IN THE SUPREME COURT OF HONG KONG

(APPELLATE JURISDICTION)

CRIMINAL APPEAL NO. 277 OF 1974

LAI FOR PUI

and

THIS QUIEN

Coram: Briggs, C.J., Huggins & McMullin, JJ.

JUDGMENT

Appellant

Respondent

Briggs, C.J.:

Mr. Bernacchi moves the Court on behalf of the Appellant

for leave to appeal against his conviction for murder. The only

ground of appeal of which notice has been given is to the effect

that the Appellant was falsely accused and wrongly convicted. We refused a request for an adjournment to enable notice to be

given of further grounds. We were informed of the further grounds

it was desired to argue and all but one of these were, in our view, clearly unsustainable. That one ground was couched in these

terms:

"The judge did not adequately explain the alternative verdict of manslaughter on the assumption that the Accused was at least one of the persons assaulting the deceased around the head. He confused the jury by saying several times that if they were not convinced that the Accused took part in the assault they might well feel there was insufficient common intention to make the Accused guilty of murder and therefore

that he could be convicted of manslaughter".

We invited counsel to explain this to us at greater length and are now satisfied that there is no substance in the complaint.

The case for the Crown was that the Appellant and a

number of other men e tered a billiard saloon and there attacked the Deceased with billiard cues. Subsequently the Appellant picked up a short, blue instrument and struck the Deceased with it on the head and nec! The Decessed died of subdural haemorrhage resulting from the head injuries. The Appellant's defence was

an alibi.