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| Nie Shubin was killed by firing squad in 1995 at the age of 20 after being found guilty of killing a woman in Shijiazhuang, in Hebei province. |
A Chinese man has had his conviction for rape and murder overturned, 21 years after he was executed.
Nie Shubin was killed by firing squad in 1995 at the age of 20 after being found guilty of killing a woman in Shijiazhuang, in Hebei province.
The supreme court ruled that the facts used in Mr Nie's trial were "unclear and the evidence insufficient".
Mr Nie's family, who have been campaigning for two decades to clear his name, have thanked his supporters.
Eleven years ago another man also said he had carried out the crime but the claim was rejected.
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| Huugjilt was only 18 at the time of his execution in 1996 |
The official number of executions are a state secret, but is believed to be in the thousands every year.
Rights groups allege that confessions used in court are forced or extracted under torture.
It is highly unusual for convictions to be overturned.
In 2014, Huugiilt, a teenager from Inner Mongolia was cleared of rape and murder, 18 years after his execution.
His parents were given 30,000 yuan ($4,850; £3,080) in compensation while 27 officials involved in his trial were later punished.
The BBC's John Sudworth in Beijing says Mr Nie's case is well-known in China.
Rather than a sign of the justice system's ability to right wrongs, many will see his exoneration as exposing continuing flaws and weaknesses in the justice system, he adds.
Source: BBC News, December 2, 2016
China court finds man executed 21 years ago innocent
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| Nie Shubin and his mother |
The case of Nie Shubin, who was 20 years old when he faced a firing squad in 1995 after being convicted of rape and murder, is the latest miscarriage of justice in the Communist-ruled country.
"The Supreme People's Court believes that the facts used in the original trial were unclear and the evidence insufficient, and so changes the original sentence to one of innocence," it said in a statement on a verified social media account.
Chinese courts have a conviction rate of 99.92 percent, and concerns over wrongful verdicts are fuelled by police reliance on forced confessions and the lack of effective defence in criminal trials.
Overseas rights groups say China executes more people than any other country, but Beijing does not give figures on the death penalty, regarding the statistics as state secrets.
Nie was convicted of raping and murdering a woman whose body was discovered by her father in a corn field on the outskirts of Shijiazhuang city, in the northern province of Hebei. But the time, method and motive for the murder could not be confirmed, and key documents related to witnesses and the defendant's testimony were missing, the supreme court said.
The "primary evidence was that Nie Shubin's confession of guilt corroborated the other evidence", but "there are doubts over the truth and legality of his confession of guilt", the statement added.
Nie's family had been campaigning for justice since a serial murderer arrested in 2005 confessed to the killing. But the case was only formally reopened in 2014.
"Thanks to all those who helped on Nie Shubin's case!" his mother, Zhang Huanzhi, 72, said on social media.
The Hebei high court, which convicted and executed Nie, "expressed deep, deep regrets" to his relatives and would investigate "possible illegal problems related to the trial" soon, according to state broadcaster CCTV.
Source: Channel News Asia, December 2, 2016
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