Transcript of the above video:

This is kind of a follow up video. We were following this story some time ago and I had done a video that I thought was kind of the conclusion be the case had been dismissed but it looks like there is further follow up. I thought of making this video after reading a recent article in the Bangkok Post, bangkokpost.com, the article is titled: Phuket doctor’s Swiss attacker gets jail. Appeal Court overturns ‘beach bully’ acquittal, accused believed to have left Thailand. Quoting further: “The Court of Appeal has sentenced a Swiss National to one month in prison for assaulting a doctor in Phuket last year, in a case that drew widespread attention.” Quoting further: “The Phuket Provincial Court initially dismissed the case on Sept 3 last year, citing reasonable doubt. However, Niphit Intharasombat, a former Phatthalung MP and a legal representative of Dr. Thandao, appealed the decision.” Quoting further: “Mr. Niphit said the Court of Appeal Region 8 delivered its ruling on Friday, sentencing Fehr to one month in prison, without suspension, under Section 391 of the Criminal Code, which covers assault that does not cause bodily harm.” Quoting further: “His actions constituted a serious offence, according to the Court. The Provincial Court was scheduled to read out the Appeal Court’s ruling on Wednesday, but (I am just going to try to redact names where possible) this person failed to appear, prompting the Court to sentence him in absentia. Authorities believe he has fled the country.” So that seems to be where things stand on that as of now.

As I said in a prior video, we didn’t want to draw any conclusions in prior videos until prior Courts had adjudicated. There seems to have been a dismissal in the lower courts; the Appeal Court here in Thailand went ahead and reversed that and it looks like there has been a sentence handed down, it looks like, again to reiterate what is in there. I urge those who are watching this video - if you are interested, go check out that article in the Bangkok Post, bangkokpost.com - but they went ahead and rescinded that and they did sentence him to one month and he seems to have left Thailand. Now that said, if he did indeed leave, it remains to be seen.

As we discussed in other videos, look, things happen here in Thailand but long story short, the Court System is different. I mean one thing that is rather interesting is for example in the United States, double jeopardy would apply in something that would be analogous if you will to this type of situation where a lower court would find someone not guilty or dismiss with prejudice; again it depends on the procedure and the procedural posture of a case but if a case is dismissed with prejudice basically, a situation where a person that was put in jeopardy of their life or liberty, then an Appeal Court could overturn the finding and oftentimes they will do things like that in order to, in their view, set the record if you will “straight” regarding the law but as for the substantive effect, it might not necessarily, well in the case again, if it was dismissed with prejudice and on appeal that was reversed, that person, unless there was some sort of intervening factor I can’t really think of, that person would not necessarily have to serve jail time. Here in Thailand, not a similar system. It is not an apples-to-apples comparison when you are comparing the US Courts to the Thai Courts and the Appeal Court overturned the Lower Court and their ruling, yes, can have substantive effect and yes, it could result in the person actually going to prison. Again, it appears that this person avoided that by apparently not being in Thailand and apparently fled the jurisdiction – again hard to say if that occurred – but that is what is being reported.

So that seems to be the conclusion in that matter and it looks like that case is closed, I guess presumably unless or until there is another appeal here in the Kingdom of Thailand.