Shen Jun incident.

1947 65438+1October 17 the military court of the first division of the us marine corps began to hear the case of sergeant Peiping Pearson. On the eve of the trial and during the trial, the Beiping Anti-Atrocities Alliance was very active, and issued a statement condemning that Pearson would be tried by a US military court instead of a Sino-US joint court.

During the trial, Shen Chong testified in court. The audience was limited to Shen Chong's father, her legal adviser Hu Shi, and a group of Kuomintang officials and journalists. Pearson faces five charges: (1) assault, (2) coercion in premeditated rape, (3) conspiracy to rape, (4) behavior that is not conducive to good manners and military discipline, and (5) immoral illegal behavior.

Pearson only admitted complicity and denied other charges. Twenty-seven witnesses from China and the United States testified before a panel of seven American military judges. China army mechanics and police officers testified that they heard the cry and saw the defendant lying on Shen, but at first they failed to rescue her because of threats from two marines. The American military police who found the group on the night of the rape also testified that Pearson was "drunk". Chinese and American doctors who examined Shen shortly after the alleged rape testified that their examination found several minor injuries in her private parts, which indicated that she had little or probably never had sexual experience in the past, but these minor injuries and cuts may also be caused by collusion. Pearson's defense lawyer, John masters, could not prove that he was a prostitute, but he argued for a long time that Shen agreed to have sex with Pearson. Masters claimed that the so-called rape usually took place in places with heavy traffic. If Shen shouted for help, more people would come to save her. Masters also said that if Shen struggled like she did when she was raped, her private parts would suffer more bruises and injuries, and the lack of fierce physical resistance indicated that it was adultery. Regarding Shen Chong's alleged rape at the police station, masters claimed that Shen Chong only did it because she was caught raping, so she thought it was more advantageous to say it was rape.

Ironically, although Pearson's lawyer probably didn't read the strict provisions on rape in the Qing Dynasty (the rigid evidence requirement put a heavy burden on the victim to prove the crime), his defense followed a similar line. According to the rape clause of the Qing Law, in order to establish the crime of rape, the victim must provide evidence to prove that she resisted from beginning to end in that torture. "this kind of evidence must include: a. witnesses who witnessed the crime or heard the victim call for help. B, there are bruises or wounds. C. torn clothes. " If the woman stops resisting during the sexual assault, the case must be characterized as "illegal rape". In other words, as one scholar said, if the victim is not dead, he must be seriously injured at least, so that the judge can confirm the truth of the rape accusation. In Shen Chong's case, she has actually met the three traditional standards of rape in China, but masters also believes that in order to establish a rape case, she should suffer more bruises and shout loudly.

Lieutenant Colonel Paul Fitzgerald, the prosecutor, pointed out that the powerful bodies of two Marines (Pearson is six feet tall and has "big and powerful hands") had a shocking effect on a female college student who weighed only 125 pounds 18 years old. He further pointed out that the law did not require the girl to do more than "what her age, strength, surrounding facts and environment allow her to do" to express her opposition. Finally, he said, it is difficult to explain why a well-born and well-educated young girl (note: Shen Chong was born in a famous family in Fujian, the great-granddaughter of Shen Baozhen, the great-granddaughter of Lin Zexu, the daughter of a famous family) is willing to spend three hours with a drunk she happened to meet in an empty playground on a cold night. The only explanation is that she must stay because she has no choice.

The trial ended on June 22, 65438/KLOC-0, and masters's weak defense failed to convince the military judge. Pearson was found guilty of all charges, commuted his sentence to private, and sentenced to 15 years in prison. Prichard was subsequently tried by another military court on 1 30th. He was found guilty of injury, retired in an impolite way and was sentenced to 65,438+00 months' imprisonment.

On March 5th, General Samuel Howard, commander of the first division of the US Marine Corps in China, approved the judgment of the military court, but the judgment still needs the approval of the Secretary of the Navy in Washington. 1in mid-June, 947, the naval judge suggested that Pearson be released and reinstated as a corporal on the grounds of insufficient evidence. The anti-American demonstrations related to the Shen Chong case have cooled down a lot, and students have focused on the anti-hunger and anti-civil war movements. This news once again aroused the anger of the media, leading to students' petitions and protest statements. In China's eyes, there is no doubt that Pearson committed rape, and Washington exonerated him from the heinous crime, which further shows that Americans ignore justice. The influential Ta Kung Pao pointed out that the "black sheep" in the US military tarnished the reputation of the US military in China, and pointed out that "if an American soldier who raped a girl in China can be regarded as innocent, then in the eyes of Americans, what kind of person has China become?" The news about the handling of the Pearson case also attracted the attention of the Kuomintang authorities, which led to another round of crazy telegraph exchanges between Nanjing and Peiping. At the same time, China's Foreign Ministry also submitted a letter of protest to the US Embassy in Nanjing, demanding that Pearson's original judgment be upheld.

Hu Shi had made a lot of efforts to strive for a legal solution that could calm students down, but at this time he painfully found that the judgment of the military court was rejected. After learning this from the local newspaper, he immediately telegraphed Si Tuleideng, expressing his serious concern and shock at the news. He warned Si Tuleideng that this may bring political shock to students, because this news will "strongly arouse anti-American riots". He strongly appealed to Si Tuleideng to seriously consider this matter. Shortly thereafter, Hu Shi read a more detailed report on the Pearson case from an American newspaper and realized that the military judge's proposal had yet to be finally approved by the Secretary of the Navy. He immediately sent another telegram marked "urgent" to Si Tuleideng, urging him to make the US government realize that all China are anxiously watching the Pearson case and regard it as "a test of American justice". He flatly rejected the American news report that Pearson was sentenced in the "national student protest", reminding Si Tuleideng that the protest took place on1946 65438+ February 30th, while the military court was on 1947 65438+ 10/7, and Pearson was.

After learning the news of the Pearson case, Shen Chong's father Shen Shao wrote a strongly worded letter to Hu Shi, accusing the Americans of ignoring justice. He pointed out that the revocation of Pearson's criminal acts has proved conclusively that China people's admiration for the United States' adherence to the rule of law will vanish. He asked Hu Shi, on behalf of his daughter, to urge the China government to intervene in order to achieve justice. The US Admiralty immediately announced that the case was still under investigation to quell the excitement that was aroused again. However, in mid-August, Navy Minister Sullivan announced that the original judgment had been revoked due to lack of evidence, and Defense Minister Jeames Fristol signed the final order.