Death Penalty for Nine Non-Violent Crimes to End

(Beijing) — Under a recently released "Criminal Law Amendment Draft," China's leaders are expected to cancel the death penalty for nine types of crimes, drawing praise from many academics and legal professionals.

But Xu Lanting, a criminal defense lawyer at Beijing Junkyong Law Firm, said China still has much further to go in capital punishment reform.

The draft amendment was submitted to the standing committee of China's National People's Congress on October 31 for the first round of deliberation.