China's famous blind activist, Chen Guangcheng, may be released from prison after a Shandong court overturned a guilty verdict on charges of damaging property and organizing a mob to disrupt traffic. Chen was sentenced in August to four years and three months in jail, the South China Morning Post reported. The Linyi Intermediate Court said the original judgement by the Yinan County Court violated lawful defence procedures. Chen, 34, was originally tried without the presence of his defence team and refused to be represented by court-appointed lawyers. His original lawyer, Xu Zhiyong, was detained on the eve of the trial. Chen gained fame after trying to start a class-action suit against Linyi officials for carrying out forced late-term abortions to meet birth control quotas.
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