Documents violence · ongoing investigation — written to inform, not to shock.
On 19 March 2004, President Chen Shui-bian and Vice President Annette Lu of Taiwan were shot while riding in the back seat of an open convertible Jeep during a campaign procession in Tainan, one day before Taiwan's presidential election. Around 1:45 pm, a bullet penetrated the vehicle's windshield and grazed Chen's stomach, causing an 11-centimetre-long, 2-centimetre-wide flesh wound; the bullet was later found lodged in his clothing. A second bullet struck a cast on Lu's knee, which she was wearing due to a prior injury. Both initially believed the sounds were firecrackers, common at Taiwanese political rallies, before realizing they had been shot. Both were taken to Chi-Mei Hospital and released the same day without losing consciousness or requiring surgery. Lawyer Wang Hsin-nan, who was traveling with Chen, confirmed the shots were fired.
The incident prompted activation of Taiwan's "National Security Mechanism" and a temporary halt to campaigning by both major political coalitions. The election was not postponed, as Taiwanese law permits suspension only upon a candidate's death; Chen and Lu went on to win by 29,500 votes. Reaction split along partisan lines: some, including Lu, suggested Beijing may have orchestrated the attack given her and Chen's support for Taiwanese independence, while some Pan-Blue supporters alleged the shooting was staged to generate sympathy votes. Police stated within hours that the crime was not political and that the People's Republic of China was not involved.
Two bullet casings, apparently from home-made guns, were recovered from the scene. American forensic experts Cyril Wecht, Michael Haag, and Timothy Palmbach traveled to Taiwan in late March 2004 to assist, followed by forensic scientist Henry C. Lee in April 2004. Lee later concluded the incident was unlikely to be a targeted political assassination attempt, given the weapon's apparent low power, though he could not issue a fully conclusive report. Interior Minister Yu Cheng-hsien and National Security Bureau director Tsai Chao-ming both resigned in connection with the incident.
In September 2004, three men were arrested at an illegal weapons factory near Tainan in possession of bullets matching those from the crime scene. In March 2005, police named two suspects, Chen Yi-hsiung and Huang Hung-ren, both of whom had died shortly after the shooting — Chen found drowned in a harbor and Huang by apparent suicide with a gun from the same manufacturer as the one used in the attack. Family members reported that Chen left suicide notes, later burned, which police interpreted as implicating him, though the source material describes this interpretation as tenuous.
On 17 August 2005, authorities officially closed the case, concluding that Chen Yi-hsiung acted alone. Doubts about the investigation persisted among segments of the public on both sides of Taiwan's political divide, and Pan-Blue legislators, along with Vice President Lu, called for continued investigation. The incident was later dramatized in the 2019 film "The Shooting of 319."
Key facts
- Victims
- Annette Lu, Chen Shui-bian
- Date
- 2004
- Location
- Tainan, Taiwan
- Case status
- solved
Case timeline
2004-03-19
President Chen Shui-bian and Vice President Annette Lu are shot while campaigning in an open vehicle in Tainan, Taiwan, one day before the presidential election.
2004-03-19
Chen and Lu are treated at Chi-Mei Hospital and released the same day; National Security Mechanism activated; campaigning by both coalitions halted.
2004-03-20
Taiwan's presidential election proceeds as scheduled; Chen appears in public to cast his vote.
2004-03-26
Police release surveillance footage of an unidentified person, the 'yellow coat bald guy,' later linked to suspect Chen Yi-hsiung.
2004-03-28
Chen Yi-hsiung is found drowned in a harbor.
2004-03-29
American forensic scientists Cyril Wecht, Michael Haag, and Timothy Palmbach arrive in Taiwan to assist the investigation.
2004-04-04
Interior Minister Yu Cheng-hsien announces his resignation.
2004-04-09
Forensic scientist Henry C. Lee arrives in Taiwan and examines the Jeep used in the shooting.
2004-06
Former Combined Logistics Command engineers simulate the shooting at a Los Angeles shooting range as part of the investigation.
2004-08-24
Legislative Yuan approves legislation establishing the '3-19 truth investigative commission.'
2004-08-29
Henry Lee submits a 130-page forensic report and photo evidence, concluding the incident was likely not a targeted political assassination.
2004-09-09
Three men are arrested at an illegal weapons factory near Tainan possessing bullets matching those found at the crime scene.
2005-03-07
Taiwanese police name suspects Chen Yi-hsiung and Huang Hung-ren, both found dead shortly after the incident.
2005-08-17
Case is officially closed with investigators concluding Chen Yi-hsiung acted alone.
Best coverage
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People
Huang Hung-Ren
CHARGEDNamed alongside Chen Yi-hsiung as a suspect by police in March 2005; found dead by apparent suicide shortly after the incident
citation on file
Chen Yi-hsiung
CHARGEDNamed by police in March 2005 as the suspect believed to have acted alone in the shooting; found dead prior to formal prosecution and the case was closed on this basis in August 2005
citation on file
Huang Chin-shou
CHARGEDArrested in September 2004 at an illegal weapons factory near Tainan in possession of bullets matching those found at the crime scene
citation on file
Annette Lu
VICTIMVice President of Taiwan, wounded by gunshot to her knee cast while campaigning on 19 March 2004
citation on file
Chen Shui-bian
VICTIMPresident of Taiwan, wounded by gunshot while campaigning on 19 March 2004
citation on file
Yeh Ho-chiang
CHARGEDArrested in September 2004 at an illegal weapons factory near Tainan in possession of bullets matching those found at the crime scene
citation on file
Chen Ching-hung
CHARGEDArrested in September 2004 at an illegal weapons factory near Tainan in possession of bullets matching those found at the crime scene
citation on file
Places
Common questions
- What happened to the victim?
- On 19 March 2004, President Chen Shui-bian and Vice President Annette Lu were shot and wounded while campaigning in an open-top vehicle in Tainan, Taiwan, one day before the presidential election. Both survived with non-life-threatening injuries, and the case was officially closed in August 2005 with investigators concluding a single deceased suspect, Chen Yi-hsiung, acted alone.
- Where did the shooting happen?
- Tainan, Taiwan.
- What is the current status of the case?
- Status: solved.
Sources
- March 19 shooting incidentwikipedia · Wikipedia · 2026-07-07
- Contemporaneous coverage — ABC News (Australia)news · ABC News (Australia) · 2026-07-07
- Contemporaneous coverage — The Guardiannews · The Guardian · 2026-07-07
