Public Defender

Considering the defendant's unequal position in litigation, a strong defender is needed to protect their rights. In Article 31, Paragraph 1 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, situations the court must or may appoint a lawyer to defend the accused have been added. When a lawyer accepts the court's appointment as defense counsel, it is not based on a contractual relationship but rather on the lawyer's social responsibility and legal provisions. These defense cases are usually referred to as duty defense cases. (Source: Miaoli District Court, Taiwan)

Relevant Legal Provisions

Facts and Reasons

The client of our firm (the appellant, who is also the defendant) holds a moderate physical and mental disability certificate and was defrauded by criminals into handing over financial institution account cards, passwords, and other related information. The defendant violated the Money Laundering Control Act and assisted in fraud. The first instance judgment sentenced the defendant to three months of imprisonment and a fine of NT$30,000. If the fine is not paid, it will be converted into labor at a rate of NT$1,000 per day. In the second instance, Attorney Yan of our firm took over the duty counsel role according to the law.

Judgment

The original judgment regarding the sentence was revoked.

The defendant's criminal circumstances were relatively minor compared to the principal offender, so under Article 30, Paragraph 2 of the Criminal Code, the sentence was reduced. Furthermore, the defendant fully confessed to all the offenses and was not subject to the provision of Article 16, Paragraph 2 of the Money Laundering Control Act (prior to the June 16, 112 amendment), which would have further reduced the sentence. Additionally, considering the defendant actively reconciled with the victim after the crime and fully compensated them, it was deemed that after the announcement of the sentence, the defendant would be sufficiently warned and there was no risk of reoffending. Therefore, the sentence was suspended for three years under the provision of Article 74, Paragraph 1, Subparagraph 2 of the Criminal Code, allowing the defendant to reform.

(Note: To protect the client's interests, certain case details and judgment images have been redacted and modified. For a full review of the case, please refer to the Judicial Yuan’s judgment database.)

Public Defender：Attorney Ian Yan