According to Hong Kong media reports, on January 13, a 36-year-old woman in Hong Kong was sentenced to 31 months in prison for throwing a steel pillar from a height the year before, with the intention of injuring two guards.
Defendant Yang Yingxi (right). Source: Hong Kong media
On the evening of July 1, 2020, the defendant involved, Yang Yingxi, who claimed to be a digital editor, stole the steel pillar involved in the case on the 3rd floor of Times Square in Causeway Bay and threw it at the police officers downstairs, with the intention of injuring two police officers and causing danger to people in public places or nearby.
According to the report, she was previously convicted of three counts of intentional and attempted to cause serious bodily injury to others, throwing objects from height and theft, and has been detained to this day, and was eventually sentenced to 31 months in prison with an additional compensation of HK$1,000.
The steel pillar that was thrown down. Source: Hong Kong media
District Court Judge Chen Guangchi rebuked defendant Yang Yingxi for his actions, saying he had clearly come to challenge the authority of the government and to attack the public power of law enforcement officers and make others "follow suit.". The defendant's decision not to intercede shows that she has no remorse, thinking that passion can win applause, which is very absurd and wishful thinking.
Chen Guangchi said that although there is no sentencing guideline for the defendant's intentional and attempted to cause serious bodily harm, depending on the circumstances of the case and the environmental evidence, no one was injured in this case, but there are still serious points and must be sentenced to deterrent punishment.
The court held that the seriousness of the case was that there were people involved in the illegal assembly in the square that day, and even though the police officers were fully armed, the steel pillar still weighed a certain amount, which may have hit the onlookers. The court sentenced him to 2 and a half years' imprisonment for the crime of intent and intent to cause serious bodily harm, 3 weeks' imprisonment for throwing objects at height, and 1 month's imprisonment for theft. The sentences for the first two charges were combined, while the theft was carried out separately, with a total sentence of 31 months.