Judge sends sheriff's officers to arrest rogue acupuncturist after another no-show
Court hears evidence Xiao Hong Liu is still practising, despite numerous court orders
There was an empty chair in front of Newfoundland and Labrador Supreme Court Justice Glen Noel on Tuesday, just as there has been every other time he's appeared in court on the matter of a disgraced acupuncturist with a disregard for court orders.
Xiao Hong Liu ghosted the proceedings again Tuesday, after having been found in contempt of court twice for violating orders to stop practising acupuncture and skipping court proceedings.
Noel asked the sheriff's officer in the courtroom to page his colleagues and ask if they could see her anywhere else in the halls of the St. John's courthouse.
"Ms. Liu is not in the building," replied officer Mike Stanford.
Noel turned to Ryan Belbin, the lawyer representing the Newfoundland and Labrador Council of Health Professionals, the regulatory body that oversees acupuncturists in the province.
"Do I have any other remedy to protect the public other than to have this absent respondent taken into custody?" Noel asked.
"At this point I don't know what it would take to stop this individual," Belbin responded.
Noel then took action on a promise he'd made at the last court appearance in August, when he gave Liu one final chance to appear in court to explain her alleged actions.
"I'm ordering the sheriff's officers to take the respondent into custody," he said.
"Understood," Stanford replied.
History of ignoring orders leads to permanent ban
Xiao Hong Liu has practised acupuncture in St. John's for decades, and did it legally for the majority of her career.
Things began to go off the rails in 2019, when someone lodged a complaint about the cleanliness of her business.
When she refused to take part in the disciplinary process, her licence was suspended by the regulator.
When she continued to practise without a licence, the regulator secured a court-ordered injunction. When she still failed to stop practising, Noel found her in contempt of court and had her supplies seized in July.
CBC News went undercover after her office had been raided by sheriff's officers and was able to book a consultation during which she offered to provide acupuncture. She told the CBC producer who went undercover that she was licensed to practise acupuncture in the province.
She was evicted from her building at Regatta Plaza in St. John's within days of the CBC story. However, Belbin told the court Tuesday that the regulator's deputy registrar was able to book an appointment with her again on Aug. 16, at Liu's home address.
Belbin also revealed that the regulator has ruled to permanently strike Liu's name from its membership. The decision, handed down on Aug. 10, called Liu "ungovernable" and ordered her to pay $46,838 to cover the costs of the investigation and hearing.
Jail time possible
If Liu can be tracked down Tuesday, she'll be held in custody overnight to appear in court 9:30 Wednesday morning.
If she can't be tracked down before Friday, Noel has asked the sheriff's officers to hold off until after the long weekend to avoid her spending multiple nights in the lockup.
"I want her to appear within 24 hours," he said.
Liu could be facing jail time as a consequence to violating Noel's orders and skipping court appearances. He asked Belbin to find other similar cases — though he couldn't think of any that exist in Newfoundland and Labrador — and come prepared with submissions on how long a period of incarceration would be appropriate.
"This is an absolute last resort that I wanted to go down," Noel said.
"I was hoping we could get the respondent's attention and that she would be here today. But obviously she's continuing to practise and continuing to flaunt the contempt of court order."
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