6 March 2009 Phrachathai web director Chiranuch Premchaiporn was first arrested when the offices of Prachatai were raided by the Crime Suppression police on 6 March 2009, on accusations of allowing webboard comments with l��se majest_ content. During the police raid, officers of the Crime Suppression Bureau accused Prachatai web manager Chiranuch of violating the computer law by posting comments threatening to national security and she was arrested. Police apparently used the Computer Crimes Law in this case to avoid international media attention regarding l��se majest_. However, later reports state that the police accused her of violating Article 15 of the Computer Act as well as disseminating lese majeste content on the website from 15 October to 3 November 2008. 24 September 2010 She was arrested for the second time on lese majeste charges upon her arrival from Hungary, after attending a conference on Internet at Freedom 2010 organized by the United Nations (UN) and the Internet Liberty 2010 Conference organized by Google and the University of Budapest. At Passport Control, as the Immigration Officer was checking her passport, they saw that there is a standing warrant against Ms. Chiranuch Premchaiporn. She was immediately taken to the Immigration Office at the Suvarnabhumi Airport where she was questioned by Immigration Officials for 2 hours. At 4:30 PM, Thai police officers picked up Ms. Chiranuch Premchaiporn from the airport's Immigration Office and brought her by car to the Khon Khaen Police Station. Prachatai is well known for its objective reporting, often carrying content that Thai newspapers would not publish, such as human rights issues, criticism of the Thai government and criticism of state forces dealing with Thailand's southern insurgency. The website also has its online discussion platform which provides space for anyone to discuss human rights issues in Thailand that receives numerous comments daily. Despite its independent political stance in Thailand's political crisis, Prachatai has been targeted by the government due to some of its reader's comments in its message board, which the government considered as containing lese majeste content. As web director of Prachatai, Ms. Chiranuch Premchaiporn is responsible for moderating all comments posted on the website, deleting any improper or illegal comments, and keeping all internet traffic records. 25 September 2010 Ms. Chiranuch Premchaiporn was released on bail with 200,000 bath fine (approximately US$6,500). She stayed in the Khon Khaen police station for 1 night. She is required to report to the Khon Khaen Muang district police station every month. Khon Khaen is a district near the border of Thailand and Laos PDR. For Ms. Chiranuch Premchaiporn to report to the police station there every month, she would need to travel for at least five hours from Bangkok, where she is based. Following Ms. Premchaiporn's arrest on 6 March 2009, she was charged under Sections 14 and 15 of the 2007 Computer-Related Crime Act. She was alleged to have allowed readers to post deemed defamatory to the King of Thailand on Prachatai's online discussion forum. From 4 February 2011 to 2 September 2011 The public prosecutor's witness hearings took place from 4 February 2011 to 2 September 2011. Between 4 and 12 February 2011, five prosecution witnesses were heard: three from the Ministry of Information and Communication Technology (MICT), one from the police and one from a private law firm. The trial resumed on 1 September 2011 with the examination of the five remaining prosecutor's witnesses. At that time, a new prosecutor and a new team of judges was appointed. The new chairing judge, Judge Nittaya Yaemsri declared that all postings at issue were l��se majest_ and would not allow defence lawyers to further argue on this issue. From 20 September 2011 to 16 February 2012 The hearings of the defence's witnesses took place from 20 September 2011 to 16 February 2012. On 21 and 22 September, testimonies of three witnesses were heard, including Ms. Chiranuch Premchaiporn herself. Other hearings were scheduled on 11, 12, 13, 14 October but flooding in Thailand prevented the continuation of the trial. The defence's witness hearings resumed from 14 February 2012 to 16 February 2012, presenting five more defense witnesses. Mr. Danny O'Brien from the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) was one of them, but was unable to testify as the translator could not translate his testimony adequately from English to Thai. Mr. O'Brien had to submit to the Court his prepared written statement, which first had to be translated into Thai language. 30 April 2012 The verdict was initially scheduled for 30 April 2012. Fifteen minutes before the hearing would start, the Court adjourned the verdict reading stating that more time was needed to examine documentation on the case. 30 May 2012 The Thai Criminal Court found Ms. Chiranuch Premchaiporn guilty under Article 15 along with section 14(3) of the 2007 Computer-Related Crime Act on one charge, out of 10 allegedly defamatory messages. The one message remained on the Prachatai discussion board for 20 days. The Court reduced the sentence of one year of imprisonment to eight months and of 30,000 Thai baht (1,000 USD) fine to 20,000 Thai baht (approximately 667 USD). The jail sentence was eventually suspended by the Court since the judge ruled that Ms. Chiranuch Premchaiporn provided very important background documents on the case during the whole trial period. 8 November 2013 The Appeal Court turned down her appeal, essentially agreeing with the Criminal Court's original verdict.