SHENZHEN: A 37-year-old law graduate in this southern city is waiting for the court to decide his fate after going on trial for killing his brain-dead wife last February.

The case has caused a debate about euthanasia in China, a hot global issue in which people have strong opinions about "mercy killings" when a person is suffering from a terminal illness or brain dead.

The court hearing was held on Wednesday in Shenzhen Intermediate People's Court, ending without a verdict. It was the first hearing since Wen Yuzhang was arrested on Feb 18, 2009.