Hong Kong's Security Bureau and Department of Justice proposed a bill to the legislature that would allow Chief Executive John Lee to declare any criminal case a national security case, which would allow the case to be tried in Hong Kong's handpicked national security courts, AP reported on June 8. If a national security charge is brought in a case involving multiple charges, this bill would also allow the other charges to be likewise considered national security offenses.

Since the passage of a national security law in 2020, the definition of national security in Hong Kong has rapidly expanded, while the independence of the judiciary has eroded. Hong Kong's national security courts have no jury, but a panel of three judges selected by Lee, and they are usually closed to the public.