Ms. Shi Meiling Dies as a Result of Torture while in Custody

Name: Shi Meiling
Gender: Female
Age: 49
Address: Jujia Village, Gaojia Town, Weibin District, Baoji City, Shaanxi Province
Occupation: Medical Ph.D. Student in Jilin University
Date of Death: April 18th, 2010
Date of Most Recent Arrest: March 13th, 2009
Most Recent Place of Detention: Chencang District Detention Centre
City: Baoji
Province: Shaanxi
Persecution Suffered: Torture, home ransacked, interrogation, detention

On the afternoon of March 13th, 2009, officers from Gaojia Town Police Station and Weibin District Police Department arrested Ms. Shi Meiling and her son Li Peng at their home. They were detained for five months. On August 24th, their family was notified that the scheduled first trial was delayed indefinitely. But on the morning of August 31st, the court suddenly called Ms. Shi's lawyer to say that the trial would begin immediately. The family reached the court more than one hour late and the door was locked. Employees told them that other trials are open to the public, but Falun Gong trials were not and family IDs had to be checked.

On October 30th, 2009, Weibin District Court secretly sentenced Ms. Shi Meiling to six years in prison, and her son Li Peng to three years in prison, with five years probation. The court never notified their family about this trial. The family received the sentencing on November 5th, 2009 and then appealed to the intermediate court. Mr. Li Peng's daughter was less than one year old. He was released on November 3rd, 2009, while Ms. Shi Meiling was held in Chencang District Detention Centre.

She was a healthy lady upon her arrest, but by January 2010, she was emaciated, had difficulty breathing, and could not lie down or stand up. The detention centre took her home when they saw she was dying. She could only lean on the bed. She died at around 6 a.m. on April 18th, 2010.

Chinese version available at http://minghui.ca/mh/articles/2010/4/26/222229.html