18-year-old murder case in Shanghai under review

An 18-year-old murder case in Shanghai that sent two people to jail is now under review after media reports referred to it as an "unjust case".

The website of the Shanghai Municipal People's Prosecution Service posted the announcement on April 8, saying the case is now under review.

The statement was posted as a response to a story in the Southern Weekly, one of China's leading newspapers. The paper ran an article on April 4 saying the lawsuit sent the two wrong men to jail 18 years ago. The piece caught the public's attention and a series of media outlets stormed to investigate it.

An official from the Shanghai People's Procuratorate, who declined to give his name, told China Daily that the city's procuratorial organ attached great importance to the case and that they're now investigating it further.

Gu Minli, 39, was found seriously injured on her head and face at her home on the morning of July 6, 1995.

Her husband Mei Jixiang, who rushed her to hospital and took care of her in the next four months, was accused of murder and of forging a robbery scene in November 1995.

After more than 10 hours of questioning, Mei Jixiang pleaded guilty and confessed that his brother Mei Jiyang participated the crime.

Mei Jixiang was given a suspended death sentence and Mei Jiyang was sentenced to 12 years under the charge of conspiracy to commit intentional homicide in 1997, according to the first-instance court. The appeal was rejected in the second trial held at the end of that year.

Mei's family and lawyers didn't give up the appeal process, though the Supreme People's Court announced that their lawsuit didn't meet the requirements for retrial in 2004. The Supreme People's Procuratorate denied Mei's demurrer request in 2006, which usually means a dead end in China's legal process.