Stewart Gale comments

*for a crime like this

@mountainpear

In the west, the sentence for a crime like would be about the same. In Japan however, where we are used to seeing murderers get little over 10 years and sex offenders getting no more than slaps on the wrist, it does seem high.

The justice system in the country just feels so random.

@tokyoliving

You seem to be obsessed with capital punishment and “the gallows”.

Have you ever heard of a case like this, where no one died, resulting in the convicted person being executed?

I haven’t.

For such a bloodthirsty person, you seem quite ill-informed about crimes and their typical punishments.

@finally rich

What are you talking about?

Are you suggesting that children raised by a single mother don’t know the difference between right and wrong and aren’t raised to understand risk and danger in society.

Absolute nonsense that one might have expected to hear in 1823, not 2023.

@Speed

This is the testimony of a prosecution witness, brought in to court with other witnesses to give examples of Spacey’s patterns of behaviour.

Spacey isn’t on trial for the incident described here.

15% of Japanese paper money has traces of cocaine in it? From it being used to snort cocaine?

I find that figure hard to believe.

@itsonlyrockandroll,

What you wrote sounds perfectly reasonable and sensible.

However, in Japan these things seem to be swept under the carpet to save people’s face and potential “embarrassment”.

On a side note, it’s curious and slightly concerning to see how many down votes there are here on comments expressing disgust at Kitagawa’s alleged behaviour.

I hear you Stephen.

There are indeed many amateur Colombos here.

There are also many who seem very much in favour of the death penalty for any murder / manslaughter case

I’ve even seen the death penalty being demanded for a death by dangerous driving incident on these pages.

Stephen,

Innocent until proven guilty is what we are used to in the West.

However, I’m pretty sure in the Japanese justice system you are immediately presumed guilty and have to prove your innocence.

Leo T

It’s not really relevant what the argument was about, nothing can excuse what he did.

He won’t be locked up for life and he certainly won’t face the death penalty.

He’ll likely receive a custodial sentence of between 10 and 15 years, based on similar cases.

Yes, that’s too lenient.

It is not advisable for a civilian to intervene in a crime, as a few posters were suggesting. The police would tell you as much. Who knows in Japan as well, in the event you hurt one of the robbers, you could be facing charges too.

Besides, when the chips are down, I very much doubt the Japan Today have a go heroes would be as brave / foolhardy as they always claim they would be in the comments of crime stories.

No great loss to Arsenal’s title hopes.

So, the victim is named but not any of the accused?

I struggle to understand the Japanese legal system.

On a practical level, I would say it would take real courage to commit suicide.

Utilities up, taxes up, supermarket prices up, transport up, gasoline up.

Salaries stagnant.

So, the victim confessed to police that he was planning to sell a controlled substance to the attackers?

Presumably, he will be in trouble with the police now himself.

He would probably have been better keeping that information to himself.

@mammamia

He already served his punishments and / or he didn’t recover a custodial sentence?

The wife should leave him immediately, he is a real P.O.S.

@sakurasuki

Thats interesting because no one here trusts the Japanese judicial system either.

What is it with Japanese men clinging to car bonnets?

You read about that quite often here.

Because the whole justice system in Japan is wrong, on so many levels.

@stormcrow

The punishment for breaking and entering is now death? Which futuristic movie is this idea from?

@antiquesaving

They are close enough in age to have known each other and him to have romantic intentions towards her and to be infatuated by her.

Then, he was maybe rejected by her.

Just speculation but quite possible.

@channawanga

How exactly are you going to smash a drone out of the sky?

And cue the anti-vaxxers……

No one seems bothered about the regular noise pollution caused by bosozoku, election trucks, kerosene trucks, recycle trucks, warabi mochi trucks or the ultra nationalists and their huge loud speakers.

These go carts can’t be any noisier or obtrusive than any of them.

I did the Mario Car experience a few years ago in Tokyo, it was great fun. I’m pleased it’s back.

A single murder case never resuits in the death penalty. And neither it should, in my opinion

With this case, once again I am confused by Japanese court sentencing.

This guy got 25 years, yet last week the guy who murdered his partner and tried to murder her daughter only got 15 years.

15 years for a murder and an attempted murder?

Another far too lenient sentence by a Japanese court, especially taking in to account the callous nature of the crimes.

After wading through the usual medieval, blood thirsty “hang ‘em high”, “cut his balls off” Japan Today posters’ comments, the ones from Lunatic and Gazman resonate with me.

What if he didn’t do it?

He might be a serial confessor to crimes he didn’t commit. It happens.

In general, I have zero confidence in the police and the prosecutors to get the right person for crimes at the best of times, They rely on confessions, quite possibly forced confessions, in some cases. A lot can happen in 23 days’ interrogation

The real killer could still be out there and no one is looking for him, that’s a depressing thought.

I suppose it’s out of the question for criminal charges to ever face these barbarians at the Japanese immigration detention centers.

I guess the powers that be all close ranks when these things come to light.

I’m really not so sure this country is a democracy.