Guangxi attorney has his clothes ripped off in court by police for refusing to hand over mobile phone
Who knew that practicing law could get you get forcibly disrobed?
On June 3rd, attorney Wu Liangshu was filing a civilian case in a district court in Nanning, Guangxi. Court police suspected that he had been recording the trial with his mobile phone. A scuffle then broke out when Wu refused to hand over his phone, which resulted in the attorney's shirt being torn open and his pants ripped away, exposing his underwear and bare skin. All of this allegedly happened with two judges and an official watching over the whole ordeal, NetEase reports.
Wu's phone didn't escape from harm's way either:
After seizing the phone, the court policemen failed to find any video footage of the trial. Whoopsies.
Wu's colleagues see this incident as just another part of a troubling trend of abuse against lawyers in China. According to SCMP, 600 lawyers have already issued a statement condemning what happened in Nanning. They have requested that the district court release surveillance footage of the incident in order to reveal the truth behind what happened.
"We are of the view that this is a classic case of abuse of power. Searching people in whatever way they please is an illegal act punishable by law," the statement added.
Lawyer is up there with doctor, judge and Shanxi coal miner as one of China's most dangerous professions -- depending on who they are representing.
Officially, the district court claims that Wu's pants were not torn due to rough handling by court police, but rather because they were shoddy and already falling apart prior to the scrum.
Meanwhile, netizen reponses on Weibo have been mixed. Some web users joked that the lawyer finally has the opportunity to buy a new pair of pants, while others urged that someone should buy him a new phone to replace his broken Huawei model. One netizen in particular commented on the attorney's good looks and acting abilities, praising his posing skills.
By Arnie Yung
[Images via NetEase]