Chiu Yi Loses Final Appeal

KMT legislator Chiu Yi, another one of Taiwan's grandstanding politicians, has lost his final appeal in the Supreme Court.

Kaohsiung prosecutors indicted Chiu and originally sought a 30-month jail sentence on charges of public disturbance for leading a group of people and hopping on a pickup truck on March 19, 2004, then attempting to ram it into the Kaohsiung District Court.

Chiu Yi claimed it was all about politics, since he has been "exposing" DPP corruption -- actually, mostly making unfounded accusations, free of evidence. Perhaps the eight policemen Chiu Yi injured might feel differently about the accusation that it is all politics. Wandering to Tamshui listed some of his escapades:

During the pan-Blue protests following their election upset, Chiu kept himself busy on election night by instigating pan-Blue rioters to ram a truck into the Kaohsiung District Court on March 20. Chiu defended himself against the charges, saying "The prosecutors decided to indict me before they had really talked to any witnesses. People who were there with me all knew that I didn't do whatever it was they said I did." Prosecutors, however, had evidence suggesting otherwise, including a video clearly showing Chiu's misbehavior, and charged him with violating the Parade and Assembly Law.

Chiu has made a name for himself by suing others for reportedly secretly filming him sex up his old lady, slamming the pan-blue alliance's legal team for its handling of the post-election lawsuits, suing DPP Chairman Yu Shyi-kun for defamation, and publicly fighting with ex-Premier Frank Hsieh over whether Hsieh had called First Lady Wu Shu-chen "an empress" over the phone. Most recently, Chiu has made headlines for ditching the PFP to return to the KMT (purportedly to buy win more votes in the year-end mayoral election), and just last night was arrested following an appearance on a popular talk show for failing to show up in court to face charges related to his performance on election night 2004.

[Taiwan]