Eye injury woman wins bid for judicial review

The injured woman hopes the High Court will eventually stop the police from making use of her medical records. File photo: RTHK

A young woman who suffered a serious eye injury during protest clashes in Tsim Sha Tsui last month has won the right to a judicial review over the police obtaining her medical records.



The woman, known only as "K" in court, is challenging the force's refusal to show her the warrant used to get hold of her file from the Hospital Authority.



The High Court bid is part of legal action aimed at stopping the police from making use of the medical records, which they said they had obtained to try to find out what caused her injury.



"K" has become a figurehead for the ongoing anti-government protests, and it's widely believed that police had shot her in the face with a bean bag round.



On Friday, judge Godfrey Lam said a hearing the previous day had shown that there is an arguable case over the court warrant and he granted leave for a judicial review.



He said being as the police have agreed to seal the medical records and won't make use of them in the meantime, he didn't need to rule on whether an interim injunction was needed.



The woman's lawyer told the High Court on Thursday that police had refused to provide them with a copy of the warrant which they had hoped to challenge to stop officers from being given the medical records.



The Department of Justice had argued that the warrant contained confidential information and it is right that the content should not be disclosed.