Former judge given suspended term for groping woman on bus

Tuesday 07th July, 05:30 AM JST

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IvanCoughalot at 11:10 PM JST - 7th July

Not yet.
smithinjapan at 11:30 PM JST - 7th July

nandakandamanda: "So what did he do exactly? Only then we can comment on the appropriateness of the law here in Japan, and the level of punishment."

He got two years, which indicates it was a pretty serious offense. It was suspended, which indicates the 'punishment' is a joke.
BeaverCleaver at 11:44 PM JST - 7th July

"Beaver: He was convicted of a crime and given a sentence. Why bother suspending it?"

Hold the phone. I took issue with the idea that he was not punished. He was punished, it just was not a direct, apporoved punishment with a rubber stamp on it. His career is gone. He has been shamed nationally, and how many other gropers get that? But let me tell you now that I do think he was punished enough, perhaps more than he should have been.

I got an ichiman note that says he would gladly spend the two years in jail (not sure how they got two years for this!) while the public was told he was just on a leave for medical reasons, and meanwhile his record was erased and nobody was any the wiser to his crime. Then he could go back to his job like nothing happened. I know I would opt for that. Wouldn't you? Try putting yourself in his shoes.

I think a core question is whether people want to punish him out of some sense of vengeance, or if they want to just totally break him. My goal is to get him to reflect on his behavior, because its the best way to ensure they he never does it again. The best way. And I want to return him to society a better man.

And thank you smithinjapan for your call to others to ditch their emotional outbursts. Emotional outbursts lead to bad decisions a whopping majority of the time. Everybody knows it, but how soon they forget.
nandakandamanda at 11:46 PM JST - 7th July

smith, he 'groped' her. With one (two?) hard horny warty hand(s) he ... what? A loaded English word to express a Japanese concept. We don't even know what word was used in Japanese. So you are saying that in your imagination 2 years means that he must have put his hand inside her clothing?
smithinjapan at 12:16 AM JST - 8th July

Beaver: Well, I have to say that I think he deserved the rubber stamp, and again until you can show me all the cases of other people simply losing their jobs and not getting prison times, I'll continue to claim preferential treatment. Look, you don't get MORE sympathy strictly because you committed a crime whilst maintaining a high position in office. While you're no less human for being PM of a country, say, you're all the more expected as a representative to be more careful about WHAT you do.

"I think a core question is whether people want to punish him out of some sense of vengeance, or if they want to just totally break him."

That's not a core question for this thread at all, it's a question for an interesting debate elsewhere. A more valid question is why he didn't get more than the societal punishment he got (I'm not denying he wasn't punished, he just wasn't punished by law).

"I got an ichiman note that says he would gladly spend the two years in jail (not sure how they got two years for this!) while the public was told he was just on a leave for medical reasons, and meanwhile his record was erased and nobody was any the wiser to his crime."

I'll happily take you up on that. Now how are we going to prove it? At least the bet proposed to you earlier is slightly more provable (ie. has he done this before). What's more, I'm willing to bet the guy gets an amakudari job, and possibly by the same people who admonished him.

"And thank you smithinjapan for your call to others to ditch their emotional outbursts."

Well, we all do it, and even you are not exempt. Still, in some cases more than others it is less than helpful. They do lead to bad decisions, but I'd say on this board they simply lead to bad choices in words, and very poor arguments.

One thing I will say, and which could be deemed as slightly emotional, what's with the talk of 'not appealing' the ruling? as though he's being generous in accepting what he got? Are you going to appeal a suspended sentence?!
smithinjapan at 12:26 AM JST - 8th July

nandakandamanda: "A loaded English word to express a Japanese concept."

No, having a separate car on the trains and subways is a Japanese concept to deal with just how rampant 'groping' is. The word and act exist in the English language and Western world well enough, and I'm pretty willing to bet that even if the act were 'outside the clothing' in North America the guy would not be getting a suspended sentence, regardless of how much he suffered in the public eye.

"We don't even know what word was used in Japanese."

There's a simple enough way to find out. Educate us.

"So you are saying that in your imagination 2 years means that he must have put his hand inside her clothing?"

Not my imagination at all, and you're actually not making a lot of sense with your comment. The guy sexually assaulted her (even more loaded!), he was sentenced to two years for it. That was the judges decision and not mine. Check it out; to the judges credit he even dismissed the excuses of 'fatigue' that the judge gave. But still, the 'punishment', in a legal sense, was absolutely nothing. HAD the man reached into the woman's clothing and groped her further, and the woman let it even get that far before screaming and grabbing the 'hard horny warty hand(s)', it would be up to the judge, and not my imagination, if that warranted a longer suspended sentence or not.
womanforwomen at 12:51 AM JST - 8th July

smith, excellent.
amerijap at 01:51 AM JST - 8th July

Well, he got a sentence after his term was expired. It's quite unlikely that he will get a job in the legal profession once again. The sentence seems too lenient, but he's not an active judge.
ca1ic0cat at 02:46 AM JST - 8th July

Obviously his former position has cushioned his hard landing but, considering the distance he has fallen, one has to wonder if he will have any satisfaction during his retirement.

He probably will get a job in a firm where he can be comfortable while keeping out of the court room. After all, they already wasted enough time to let his term expire rather than impeaching him. The system is protecting its own. That would be one good reason to lock him up.
Fadamor at 02:57 AM JST - 8th July

A 2-year sentence suspended for 5 years means if he screws up for ANY reason in the next 5 years, they can throw him in jail for 2 years on the previous sentence. Yes, he'll probably be groping-away again in 6 years, but he should be a good boy for at least 5.
zhazam05 at 11:55 AM JST - 8th July

Any amount of time is a start in the right direction it aint panties the old perv willbe groping in THE "CAN" HaHaHaHaHaHaHaHaHa!!!!!
Molenir at 01:57 PM JST - 9th July

Takahara dismissed the defense counsel’s call for leniency on the grounds Ichiki was exhausted mentally and physically from overwork at the time, saying such reasons ‘‘cannot justify the crime.’’

So... they dismissed the call for leniency, by suspending his sentence? Pretty damn lenient if you ask me. No jail time is tough to beat when it comes to leniency.
smithinjapan at 04:09 PM JST - 9th July

Molenir: Agreed. As I said before, it's pretty ridiculous to 'punish' someone with a suspended sentence, although it can limit immediate recurrences. I think this is what's called a "Let's try and look like we're doing the right thing while letting the guy off" kind of action. It's like when the government pats themselves on the back for passing anti-this and anti-that, but never bothers to implement measures on how to enforce or punish people who go against it. Instead they simply pass the laws, let it be known they've passed the laws, and then leave it up to the individual (municipalities) to 'govern' themselves.

What I'd like to see is a comparison to other countries' suspended sentences with such crimes, if other countries even HAVE suspended sentences. I know it's not a thing for this thread/site, but just stating what I'd like to see.
mousepotato464 at 07:45 PM JST - 12th July

Suspended sentence Some punishment
Fadamor at 02:53 AM JST - 14th July

Look at it this way, If you put him in jail, then 2 years and a day later he is back on the street grabbing boobie. If you SUSPEND that sentence for 5 years, he's got to behave for THAT long before he can start grabbing things again or it is an automatic 2 years in jail without going to trial first... and he'll STILL have to go to trial for the new offense. The suspended sentence for a non-violent crime actually makes him behave longer than jail time would. (Note: I said "non-violent", not "victimless". There's a difference.)