Where is the neighborly love?

Murder due to land dispute

Courtroom No. 1, Nghe An Provincial People’s Court, was packed with people on a day in late September. In addition to relatives of the two defendants and the victim, neighbors interested in the case all put aside their work to come to court. Among the “forest of people” present in court, the white scarves of the victim’s family were clearly visible. The deceased’s portrait was tightly held by the victim’s family, while in the other row, the defendant’s wife also had her own worries.

The two defendants Tran Xuan Dung (56 years old), Tran Xuan Hung (26 years old) and the victim Tran Van Q. are neighbors, living in Nghia Dong commune, Tan Ky district. Neighbors help each other in times of need, so there was a period of closeness between the two families. However, all conflicts stemmed from the fact that the two sides hadconflictland related

Unable to find common ground, the two sides often quarreled and cursed at each other. This conflict smoldered for years, causing the neighborhood to crack. Then, the land dispute pushed the two families into the tragedy of a murder case.

At about 7:15 p.m. on March 24, 2023, Mr. Tran Van Q. brought a knife and stood in front of Dung's house, cursing and threatening. After the verbal fight, Mr. Q. held a knife in one hand and two billiard balls in the other, jumped onto the chair and table, chasing and beating Dung, causing everyone present to run away.

At this moment, Mr. Dung's wife came home from the market and begged Mr. Q. not to cause trouble and "let's talk slowly". In response, Q. threatened to kill Dung and chased him away, but he was unsuccessful and continued to return to the yard to curse. Being chased by a neighbor with a weapon, Dung took a metal bar and hit Q.'s hand, causing the knife to fall to the ground.

At this time, Tran Xuan Hung (Dung's son) ran out of the kitchen with a knife and slashed Mr. Q's head. The victim ran away, Hung continued to slash his neighbor's shoulder and back many times. Dung stood nearby and continued to hit Mr. Q, causing the victim to collapse unconscious and die later. The next afternoon, Hung went to the police to surrender.

Answering the court's questions, the two defendants admitted that there had been a long-standing land dispute between the two families, but the cause of the incident that day was the victim who came to the house with a knife to curse and cause trouble first. Dung testified in court: "They brought weapons to the house, cursed and threatened to kill them. The defendant was the pillar of the family, so it was his responsibility to protect them."

Defendant Hung, who used a knife to slash the victim multiple times, said he was so upset when he saw his neighbors cursing, threatening, and chasing his father that he could not control his actions. When asked why he did not stop when the victim had lost the ability to resist, Dung remained silent and then answered, "It was in self-defense."

At the trial, the two defendants expressed remorse for their wrongdoings. After the incident, both of them had the victim’s family cover all funeral expenses. In the presence of the victim’s representative at the trial, the two defendants apologized and expressed their goodwill in settling the civil compensation for the victim’s family.

Lessons about neighborly love

The pain of losing a husband, a father, and the breadwinner of the family made the victim’s wife and children unable to control their emotions and reproach them. The victim’s family requested the court to try the defendants according to the law. Faced with the victim’s family’s pain, the two defendants could only bow their heads.

After a day of trial with analysis from the panel of judges and lawyers, the defendant’s family and the victim’s family gradually reached an agreement on civil compensation. Right at the trial, the two sides reached an agreement and completed the civil compensation. At the same time, they hoped that after the trial ended, the two families would “resolve” their long-standing conflicts so that their lives would no longer be as hostile as before.

The representative of the People's Procuracy of Nghe An province, who exercised the right to prosecute at the trial, stated that the cause of this case stemmed from conflicts and disputes that are common in people's lives. If both sides had soon found a common voice to resolve the problem, this unfortunate incident would not have happened. The case is a common lesson for many people in how to behave with each other in daily life.

After the trial, the panel of judges determined that the defendants' family had compensated all damages as requested by the victim's representative, which was a mitigating circumstance. In addition, the two defendants also had other mitigating circumstances such as honestly confessing, repenting, actively participating in the movement to prevent the Covid-19 epidemic... The court also determined that in this case, the defendants committed the crime in a case of being mentally provoked by the illegal acts of the victim, therefore sentencing defendants Tran Xuan Hung to 11 years in prison and Tran Xuan Dung to 4 years in prison.

So, just because of a land dispute, two families who were neighbors became defendants and victims in a murder case. The men who were the pillars of the family, one died, one went to prison, leaving the burden on their wives. From now on, the lives of the two families will continue, they are still neighbors but more or less will not be as easy as before. This is a valuable lesson for everyone in social relationships, because life requires patience and sharing...