Gu Kailai Trial Ends Without Verdict

Posted August 9th, 2012 at 4:50 am (UTC-5)
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The high-profile murder trial of the wife of disgraced Chinese politician Bo Xilai has ended after just one day.

A court official in the eastern city of Hefei said Thursday a verdict has not been delivered in the case. He said the defendant, Gu Kailai, did not object to the charges and is in “good shape and mentally stable.”

Gu and her butler are charged with murdering British businessman Neil Heywood in November in the southwestern city Chongqing, where Bo was Communist Party leader.

The case is China's most politically sensitive in recent memory and has already brought down Gu's husband, Bo Xilai, who was once considered a rising star in Chinese politics.

The son of a famous revolutionary leader, the charismatic Bo had been a top contender for the Politburo Standing Committee, China's top decision-making body, before he was stripped of his political posts earlier this year.

Observers say the outcome of Gu's trial was likely decided beforehand. If convicted, Gu faces a possible death penalty. But the fate of her husband, who is being investigated for corruption, is not known.

The scandal comes at a sensitive time for China's Communist Party, which is set to undergo a rare leadership transition later this year.