【明報專訊】The founder of Next Digital, Jimmy Lai, and seven others have been accused of organising and participating in an unauthorised assembly in Victoria Park on August 18 the year before last. The Hong Kong government originally hired David Perry QC, a British barrister, as the prosecutor. Without naming names, the British Foreign Secretary criticised Perry for being a "mercenary". Eventually, the Hong Kong Department of Justice replaced the prosecutor after he decided not to take the job. David Perry is a well-known name in the legal circles. He has been appointed by the Department of Justice many times to come to Hong Kong to serve as the prosecutor in high-profile cases, including former Chief Executive Donald Tsang's charge of misconduct in public office and former Chief Secretary for Administration Rafael Hui's bribery charges.