Man compensated for 12 years of wrongly detention

A man who was wrongly detained and jailed over a period of 12 years for the rape and murder of a teenage girl will receive 980,000-yuan (161,000 U.S. dollars) in compensation, a central China court announced on Tuesday. The Intermediate People's Court in Pingdingshan City, Henan Province, in a public notice announced Li Huailiang was entitled to 780,000 yuan in compensation for 4,282 days of wrongful detention. He will also receive 200,000 yuan in compensation for psychological damage, according to the result of a state compensation proceeding. From 2001 to 2006, Li was the prime suspect in the rape and murder of a 13-year-old girl in Yexian County in Pingdingshan in August 2001. During the period, he stood trial seven times and was given three different verdicts. He was sentenced to 15 years in prison, death and death with reprieve respectively. All three verdicts were overturned due to a lack of evidence. However, Li was not released as he had to await a further trial. In June 2012, China Comment magazine reported that Pingdingshan Intermediate People's Court signed a "death penalty guarantee" with the girl's parents in 2004. The guarantee promised to sentence Li to death so that the girl's mother would not appeal to higher authorities, even if the verdict was ultimately overturned by Henan Higher People's Court. The intermediate court responded by saying the agreement had no legal standing. On April 25 this year, Li was found not guilty and finally released. In the claim, filed to the intermediate people's court, Li asked for 3.79 million yuan in compensation from the court for the violation of his personal freedom, mental suffering, medical costs, loss of work and legal fees. The court dismissed Li's request for more compensation.