Officials from the Taipei City Police Department's Shihlin Precinct said at a press conference yesterday that police were following regulations when they tried to stop Taipei County Councilor Lin Shu-fan (林淑芬) from driving up Yangte Boule-vard (仰德大道) at 2pm Saturday.
According to police, the 29-year-old Lin was riding in a sedan driven by her younger brother. They were on their way to Yangmingshan National Park when Officer Wang Chung-ta (
The Chihshanyen Police Station restricts access to the boulevard from 7am to 3pm on weekends and national holidays. The only vehicles allowed to be on the road at that time are scooters, motorcycles, buses and vehicles with permits.
Lin began to curse at Wang after she was told the sedan wasn't allowed to proceed. Wang then pulled her out of the car and brought her back to the police station, which is about 20m from the check point.
Lin accused the police of mistreating her and said that she would file a suit against the police.
"They pulled me out from the car and threw me against the wall when we arrived at the police station. How can they treat me like this? I'm a woman," Lin said. "I can't imagine how they treat other citizens since they did this to a Taipei County councilor."
Lin admitted to being verbally abusive with the officer.
"I admitted what I've done. I said those words because I was extremely mad," she said.
At yesterday's press conference, Wang denied that he mistreated Lin and insisted that he did everything by the book.
"If I really did what she said, her injuries would have been worse than they are. In addition, she was not the only person who was injured. I'm a victim, too," Wang said as he he showed scratches on his arm.
The police also played a cassette and a video-tape made at the station when Lin was brought in. In the tapes, Lin can be heard yelling and swearing at the police. According to the tapes and witnesses who backed up their content, the police did not throw Lin against the wall.
"Lin used abusive language three times. The doctor who checked her over after the incident only found a scratch on her arm. Obviously, her accusations are untrue," said Chan Yung-hua (
The police said that Lin violated Article 140 of the Criminal Code. They have transferred her case to the Shihlin District Prosecutors' Office for further investigation.
Article 140 says that a person who insults a public official during the legal discharge of his or her duties or publicly offers an insult with respect to the legal discharge of such duties shall be punished with imprisonment for not more than six months, or a fine of not more than NT$100.
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