World
Her family insists that she is very sick and needs to be allowed to go home
Family of American Woman Held in China for 10 Years Asks for Help. Dawn Michelle Hunt, who is serving a life sentence, says she was duped into carrying drugs.
Updated 2024-Oct-07 02:00
A woman wearing a pink shirt and a black coat stands in front of a window display, her arms outstretched.
However in 2020 in Spain an American man was given a seven and a half year prison sentence for having cocaine hidden in his jackets in his luggage despite U.Officials informing Spanish authorities that the man may have been tricked and manipulated. Tim Hunt is set to testify in a September 18 session organized by the Congressional Executive Commission on China which is a group of politicians from different parties dedicated to overseeing human rights in China.
He traveled to Guangzhou in June to see his sister. He described her as tired and reserved. A prison employee stood nearby jotting down details.
According to him medical professionals at the prison informed Ms. Hunt that surgery could be necessary for her tumors.
She declined to receive treatment as she lacked confidence in the prison. Research was contributed by Kitty Bennett and Joy Dong.
John Kamm who established the Dui Hua Foundation a human rights organization based in San Francisco believes that the State Department should increase their efforts to help Hunt and other Americans currently detained in China.
This involves advocating for increased phone call duration and more frequent family visits improved lawyer access and regularly checking on prisoners by consular officials.
Dawn Michelle Hunt loved sweepstakes. A 42 year old temp worker in Chicago she entered almost every contest she encountered.
So when she got an email from someone who described himself as a British lawyer saying she had won a trip to Australia she was elated.
I hit it big she told her father after the plane ticket arrived. The trip took her through China to pick up the prize documents along with handbags that she was instructed to carry on to Australia.
The British lawyer had promised in an email to meet her there. My dear Dawn he called her. But sewn into the lining of the bags was more than two kilos or 4.5 pounds of methamphetamines Chinese authorities say. Instead of a resort in Australia Ms. Hunt landed in a Chinese prison sentenced to death with a two year reprieve.
Ms. Hunt’s sentence handed down in 2017 was later commuted to life. Ms. Hunt and her family say that she was an unwitting victim of an elaborate drug trafficking scheme versions of which have ensnared people around the world including a number of older Americans.
Courts in some cases have handed down reduced sentences recognizing that the offenders had been duped into being drug mules.
China is known for its strict drug laws and a review of several cases there with similar circumstances in which foreign offenders may have been scammed or set up indicates that courts are not so lenient in such cases.
In a ruling on Ms. Hunt’s case a judge acknowledged the ruse but concluded that she was smart enough to have realized what was really happening by the time she arrived in Asia.
Was fond of entering sweepstakes and competitions. Hunt was raised in a middle class area of Chicago where her parents worked as police officers.
Talented and dedicated she had a passion for sewing and pursued a degree in textile design. Enjoying pop culture she indulged in People magazine following celebrities such as Anthony Bourdain without any history of criminal activity.
In 2014 she was informed of her contest victory. Traveling to Hong Kong she was accommodated in a hotel by her hosts who allowed her to order room service until she received her Chinese visa as told by Tim Hunt.
She proceeded to Guangzhou located in the southern region of China. Right before her departure from the city she was escorted to.
