Son of Chinese Official Tried in Hit and Run Case

VOA Breaking News
January 26, 2011 at 5:20 am

The son of a senior Chinese police officer went on trial in China Wednesday accused of killing a young woman while driving under the influence of alcohol.

The case caused nationwide anger following reports in October that the driver, 22-year-old Li Qiming, had has used his father's name to try to escape punishment. Witnesses to the accident at Hubei University in October said Li ran from the scene shouting, “Go ahead, sue me. My father is Li Gang.”

At the time, Li Gang was deputy police chief in the district where the university is located. Twenty-year-old student Chen Xiaofeng was killed in the accident and another young woman was injured.

It was not clear when a verdict will be announced.

The widespread anger over the case reflects the common belief that the children of senior government and Communist Party officials enjoy special privileges.

Internet forums and chat rooms have provided a way for Chinese to express their frustrations at the system and in some cases have forced authorities to reconsider policy decisions. Officials in Henan province last week reversed a life sentence handed a farmer for evading highway tolls following a surge of Internet protests.