A Chinese-born American businessman was sentenced last week to five years in prison in China, on charges related to a criminal case nearly 25 years ago, despite having frequently made routine trips in and out of the country after the fact.

上周，一名生于中国的美籍商人在中国被判处五年监禁，其罪名与近25年前的一起刑事案件有关，尽管他在案件发生后仍经常出入中国。

The businessman’s family, as well as a longtime human rights activist, say the case is an example of the arbitrary nature of law enforcement in China. They have urged the Chinese government to release the businessman, David Lee, on humanitarian parole, noting that he had been hospitalized for 10 days and that they believed he had suffered a stroke.

这位商人的家人以及一位长期从事人权工作的活动人士说，此案是中国执法专断性质的一个例子。他们敦促中国政府以人道主义保外就医的方式释放这位商人李增卯，并指出他已经住院10天，他们认为他患了中风。

Mr. Lee’s sentencing on April 23 came as tensions between the United States and China were at their highest point in years, inflamed by President Trump’s tariffs. There were no signs that the case was related to the tensions, but it could add another source of friction to the relationship.

李增卯于4月23日被判刑，美国和中国之间的紧张局势正处于多年来的最高点，特朗普总统的关税政策激化了这种紧张局势。没有迹象表明此案与两国紧张关系有关，但它可能会成为又一个制造摩擦的事由。

Mr. Lee was found guilty of intentional injury and “picking quarrels and provoking trouble,” a vague charge that China often uses against people it perceives as a threat to social stability. In the written verdict, the judge said that Mr. Lee, 61, had been involved in three altercations in 2000 and 2001, one of which led to a man’s death.

李增卯被判故意伤害罪和“寻衅滋事罪”，这是一个模糊的指控，中国经常用其来对付它认为对社会稳定构成威胁的人。法官在书面判决书中说，现年61岁的李增卯在2000年和2001年参与了三起口角，其中一起导致一名男子死亡。

But the family of Mr. Lee, who held a green card at the time and became an American citizen in 2002, said his role in those incidents was minor. He was briefly detained then released without charges, and he assumed the case was closed, his wife, Louise Lin, said. Over the next two decades, he traveled to China nearly every month for his work as a wholesale lighting supplier for Home Depot.

但李增卯的家人表示，他在这些事件中的角色微不足道。李增卯当时持有美国绿卡，并于2002年成为美国公民。他的妻子露易丝·林（Louise Lin，音）说，他被短暂拘留，然后未被指控，获得释放，他以为案件已经结案了。在接下来的20年里，他几乎每个月都要去中国，为家得宝进行灯具批发。

Mr. Lee sometimes spent months at a time in China with no issue, Ms. Lin said. “If you know you’re in trouble, of course you’re not going to go back,” said Ms. Lin, who lives in California.

露易丝·林说，李增卯有时在中国一待就是几个月，没有任何问题。“如果你知道自己有麻烦了，你当然不会回去，”住在加州的露易丝·林说。

He often returned to Hebei Province, where he grew up. That was also where he was abruptly arrested in the elevator bank of his hotel last April, while going to breakfast with Ms. Lin, she said. She said she did not know why Mr. Lee was being targeted.

他经常回到他长大的河北省。她说，去年4月，他就是在那里的酒店电梯间里突然被捕的，当时他正准备和露易丝·林共进早餐。她说，她不知道为什么李增卯会成为目标。

Ms. Lin has not been able to see her husband since he was detained, except for once briefly when he appeared in court, she said. But she had heard from representatives of the United States Embassy, who were allowed to visit him, that he was in poor health and appeared to have lost around 50 pounds.

她说，自从丈夫被拘留以来，除了一次在法庭上短暂露面外，她一直没能见到他。但她从获准探视他的美国大使馆代表那里听说，他的健康状况不佳，似乎瘦了大约20多公斤。

John Kamm, the founder of the Dui Hua Foundation, a California-based organization that works to free political prisoners in China, said that Mr. Lee should have been released on humanitarian grounds, as China has done in the past, when a person is at risk of dying.

康原(John Kamm)是总部设在加利福尼亚州、致力于释放中国政治犯的 “对话基金会”的创始人。他说，出于人道主义考虑，李增卯应该被释放，以往遇到有死亡风险的情况，中国曾有过类似的处置。

He argued that the sentence was too heavy, and reflected the “appalling state of U.S.-China relations.” He noted that Mr. Lee was arrested while the White House and the Chinese government were negotiating the releases of other American prisoners.

他认为量刑过重，反映了“美中关系令人震惊的状况”。他指出，李增卯被捕时，白宫和中国政府正在就释放其他美国囚犯进行谈判。

Reached by phone, the judge in the case, Lin Sen, declined to comment. The Chinese Foreign Ministry did not respond to a request for comment. The United States Embassy in Beijing declined to comment.

记者通过电话联系到此案的法官林森，他拒绝置评。中国外交部没有回应置评请求。美国驻北京大使馆拒绝置评。

The main incident in the case took place in March 2001, in Mr. Lee’s hometown, Baoding, in Hebei. According to the indictment, Mr. Lee, after learning of a business dispute involving an acquaintance, drove three people to the site of the dispute, where they began fighting with another group, using knives taken from the trunk of Mr. Lee’s car. One of the men in the opposing group was stabbed and died. Then Mr. Lee and his acquaintances drove away.

这起案件的主要事件发生在2001年3月，地点是李增卯的家乡河北保定。起诉书称，李增卯在得知一桩涉及一名熟人的商业纠纷后，开车将三人带到争执地点，在那里，他们用从李增卯汽车后备箱里取出的刀与另一群人打斗。对方的一名男子被刺身亡。然后李增卯驾车带同伴离去。

The people whom Mr. Lee drove were sentenced to prison. Mr. Lee, according to the verdict, said that he had not gotten out of the car. Other witnesses said the same.

同车三人均已获刑。根据判决书，李增卯说他没有下车参与斗殴。其他目击者也做出相同陈述。

In the United States, people convicted of driving getaway cars have been charged with murder and received prison sentences ranging from a few years to life.

在美国，驾驶汽车逃跑的人可被指控犯有谋杀罪，并可被判处几年到终身监禁。

The judge in China said he sentenced Mr. Lee more lightly because he was an accessory rather than a direct participant in the violence. Ms. Lin acknowledged that, since her husband had driven the car, she would have accepted a short prison sentence. But she thought five years was excessive.

中国的法官说，他对李增卯的判决较轻，因为他是暴力事件的从犯，而不是直接参与者。露易丝·林承认，既然是她丈夫开的车，她可以接受短期监禁。但她认为五年时间太长了。

The police detained Mr. Lee after the fight, but prosecutors did not authorize his formal arrest, the verdict said. He was “released on guarantee,” a form of bail. (Under Chinese law, criminal suspects must be released after 35 days if investigators have not gathered enough evidence to press charges. But the investigation can remain open.)

判决书说，警方在斗殴事件后拘留了李增卯，但检察官没有批准正式逮捕他。他被“取保候审”，这是一种保释形式。（根据中国法律，如果调查人员没有收集到足够的证据提出指控，犯罪嫌疑人必须在35天后释放。但调查可以继续进行。）

About a month later, Mr. Lee flew to the United States.

大约一个月后，李增卯飞往美国。

The court accused Mr. Lee of jumping bail, but Ms. Lin said that her husband had not been aware of any travel restrictions. She noted that he had not been formally arrested, and that he started returning regularly to China around 2004 or 2005, without incident.

法院指控李增卯弃保潜逃，但露易丝·林说她丈夫不知道有任何旅行限制。她指出，他没有被正式逮捕，他在2004年或2005年左右开始定期返回中国，没有出现任何问题。

His lawyers have filed an appeal.

他的律师已提出上诉。