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China Jails Ex-Lawyer for Four Years Over Virus Reports in Wuhan

  • Media reports say Zhang Zhan, 37, was convicted on Monday
  • China has faced criticism for its early handling of Covid-19
A policeman tries stop journalists from recording outside the Shanghai Pudong New District People's Court, where Chinese citizen journalist Zhang Zhan is set for trial on Dec. 28.

A policeman tries stop journalists from recording outside the Shanghai Pudong New District People's Court, where Chinese citizen journalist Zhang Zhan is set for trial on Dec. 28.

Photographer: Leo Ramirez/AFP/Getty Images

Updated on

China has sentenced a former lawyer to four years in prison over her posts about the coronavirus response in Wuhan, media reports said, the first known conviction of someone who chronicled authorities’ early struggle to manage the outbreak.

Zhang Zhan, 37, was convicted at the Shanghai Pudong New Area People’s Court on Monday of “picking quarrels and provoking trouble,” the South China Morning Post reported, citing one of her lawyers. The offense carries a maximum sentence of five years. The Hong Kong Free Press earlier reported the sentencing.