The Shijingshan District People's Court on Wednesday heard a case in which a resident committed suicide to protest against the building of a public toilet near his home, reports Beijing Evening News.

Liu Shanchun drank poison in front of construction workers at the site on July 25 after his previous protests did not bring about the results he desired.

Liu's wife, son and 71-year-old father took the Shijingshan Environmental Sanitation Service Centre to court, accusing it of causing Liu's death and demanding 110,000 yuan (US$13,000) in compensation.

But the defence lawyer said the centre should not be held accountable, as it had agreed beforehand to move the construction site three metres farther from Liu's home and cancel the windows originally designed to face that direction.

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