Chapter 74: Chapter 74 I Want to Sue the Entire Building
One bottle down, then another. Under the numbness induced by the abundant alcohol, he gradually passed out, forgetting all his troubles. He lay on the sofa, sound asleep.
Not long after, a knock sounded on his door.
"Hello, is anyone there?"
"We are police officers from the local police station, conducting an investigation into objects thrown from a height. We need to ask you some questions. Please cooperate."
Unfortunately, the unconscious Gao Feng didn’t hear the knocking at all.
"Captain Shen, it seems there’s no one inside."
Outside, a police officer turned and looked at Shen Dao.
Shen Dao furrowed his brow. "Let’s head to the 19th floor."
He had anticipated this situation. At this time of day, not everyone would necessarily be at home. Moreover, they were merely making routine inquiries and didn’t have an evidence collection warrant approved by higher authorities. According to the law, residents could also choose not to cooperate.
「At eleven o’clock at night.」
「Property Management Center.」
Exhausted, Shen Dao and his officers returned to the property management center.
Shen Dao looked at Qin Mu and sighed. "Qin Mu, the situation is complicated. We still haven’t identified the person who threw the object."
They had spent over two hours questioning residents above the fourth floor. Some people were at home and cooperated with the investigation. Others were irritable, simply stating it wasn’t them before shutting the door. Still others weren’t home and didn’t answer.
The investigation wasn’t thorough enough. They still couldn’t determine which floor the object was thrown from.
Actually, at this stage of the investigation, he was almost tempted to persuade Qin Mu to give up. The act of throwing objects from a height was indeed deplorable, but gathering evidence and asserting one’s rights was extremely difficult.
"Couldn’t find them?"
Qin Mu, seeing the exhausted faces of Shen Dao and the others, knew they had done their best.
Meanwhile, the property manager, He Bimin, stepped forward again. He continued to try and smooth things over, suggesting, "Everyone has been busy for so long. In my opinion, why not just let it go? Even if we find the person, all they’ll get is a verbal warning and a fine..."
Shen Dao said nothing upon hearing this, merely looking back at Qin Mu.
Qin Mu was the main party involved in this case. Although Shen Dao genuinely wanted to help find the culprit, without an investigation warrant, there was no way to gather evidence.
To apply for an investigation warrant from higher authorities would require evidence of serious consequences, and the current situation didn’t meet that threshold. In other words, unless the culprit confessed, they were helpless.
He Bimin also looked at Qin Mu, putting on an aggrieved expression as he said, "Mr. Qin, look... The police officers have been busy all night. It’s not that we aren’t cooperating, but we really can’t find anyone."
However, Qin Mu’s expression remained stern as he retorted coldly, "Let it go? It’s impossible to just let it go!"
Throwing objects from a height, by its nature, is no different from murder. To simply let the perpetrator get away with it... He probably wouldn’t be able to sleep tonight.
He took a deep breath and said in a solemn voice, "Since no one is admitting to it, I’ll go to court tomorrow, submit a lawsuit, and sue this entire building."
The moment he finished speaking, both Shen Dao and He Bimin looked shocked.
Sue an entire building directly? This idea of Qin Mu’s was completely beyond their expectations.
"Mr. Qin, I know you’re angry, but... is it really necessary to sue an entire building?" He Bimin swallowed and said carefully, "In this building, there’s only one culprit who threw the object; everyone else is innocent. Isn’t suing them a bit excessive...?"
Qin Mu glanced at He Bimin and retorted, "If the culprit isn’t found and taught the lesson they deserve, can you guarantee they won’t do it a second time? This time no one was hit, but what about next time?"
Confronted with this question, He Bimin was immediately speechless.
Indeed. Throwing objects from high-rise buildings is an extremely vile act. If the perpetrator isn’t punished this time and gets away scot-free, there’s no guarantee they won’t do it again. After all, the cost of throwing a bottle down is almost nothing.
At this moment, Shen Dao, who had been silent, suddenly spoke. "Even if you sue an entire building, I’m afraid the court won’t accept the case."
I’ve analyzed this before. This case of throwing objects from a height cannot be classified as intentional homicide or intentional injury. And for the crime of throwing objects from a height, if no serious consequences result, the punishment is merely criminal detention, public surveillance, or a fine. The court wouldn’t accept your lawsuit against an entire building. Ultimately, the law aims to maintain social harmony. Given the minor penalties involved, the court would be unlikely to allow an entire building’s residents to be named as defendants.
"The penalties for throwing objects from a height are low, but... what about the crime of endangering public safety by dangerous means?" Qin Mu offered a slight smile and said calmly, "Article 291 of the Criminal Law states that throwing objects from buildings or other high places, if the circumstances are serious, is punishable by imprisonment of no more than one year, criminal detention, or public surveillance, and may also incur a fine."
"However, there’s a supplementary clause: if the aforementioned act also constitutes another crime, the conviction and punishment shall be determined according to the more severe offense."
Shen Dao’s expression shifted as he heard this, and he grew thoughtful.
"And I recall another article in the Criminal Law: Endangering Public Safety by Dangerous Means."
"Article 114 stipulates that committing arson, breaching dikes, causing explosions, releasing toxic, radioactive, or infectious disease-causing substances, or using other dangerous methods to endanger public safety, even without causing serious consequences, shall be punished by fixed-term imprisonment of not less than three years but not more than ten years."
"Causing serious injury, death, or major losses to public or private property is punishable by fixed-term imprisonment of not less than ten years, life imprisonment, or the death penalty," Qin Mu continued, reciting the articles of the law verbatim, without a single error.
Upon hearing Qin Mu recite these legal statutes, Shen Dao finally understood. He was thrilled.
"That’s right!" Shen Dao exclaimed. "The culprit’s actions clearly constitute the crime of endangering public safety by dangerous means! If the articles of criminal law you just recited are correct, this falls under the principle of concurrent offenses being punished by the most severe charge. The culprit’s crime isn’t just throwing objects from a height!"
Because of Qin Mu’s call, he and his officers had worked overtime late into the night. He, too, was seething with anger towards the litterer. The property management had issued a notice, and the police had questioned residents door-to-door, yet no one admitted responsibility. He had been on the verge of giving up... Unexpectedly, Qin Mu had found this alternative approach within the Criminal Law!
However, amidst his excitement and shock, he looked up and couldn’t help asking, "Huh? How are you so familiar with these legal articles? I remember you weren’t very knowledgeable about them before."
He had personally handled Sun Chenglin’s case. Back then, Sun Chenglin had barged into the nursing home, committing numerous offenses. But Qin Mu had only identified the acts of blackmail and extortion at the time; he was nowhere near as knowledgeable as he was today.
Asked this, Qin Mu touched his nose and explained with a dry laugh, "Well, I’ve been pushed around a lot lately, haven’t I? I figured I should use the law to protect myself, so I’ve spent my free time reading up on it."