Man found insane, not guilty of killing parents, sister 4 years ago

Saturday 28th June, 06:02 AM JST

MITO —

A 31-year-old man accused of killing his parents and his elder sister in Tsuchiura, Ibaraki Prefecture, in November 2004, was found insane and not guilty on Friday. The Mito District Court ruled the defendant could not be held punishable under the Penal Code, said Presiding Judge Shiego Ito of the Tsuchira district court.

The name of the defendant is withheld because he was found insane. The defense said that the defendant suffered from schizophrenia after dropping out of a professional school. The prosecution cited the defendant’s act of preparing weapons for the crime as a sign of his mental competency. Ultimately, a court-commissioned psychiatrist testified that the defendant was in a state of diminished capacity and had no clear concept of right and wrong at the time of the crime. The Penal Code says ‘‘An act of insanity is not punishable. An act of diminished capacity shall lead to the punishment being reduced.’’

According to prosecutors, the defendant made the decision to kill his father after being repeatedly told to find a job. On November 24, 2004 the defendant killed his mother and sister with a hammer and kitchen knife and killed his father later that day.

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12 Comments

paolo27th at 07:54 AM JST - 28th June

I'm confused as to how courts in Japan seem to randomly decide whether to listen to their own appointed psychiatrists or not.
borscht at 09:15 AM JST - 28th June

Paolo,

If the court-appointed shrink says what the court wants to hear, they listen. If the shrink says something the court doesn't want to hear, they don't listen. Simple.

I'm just wondering why it took them four years to figure this out. That must've been a long battery of psychological tests.
romulus3 at 10:23 AM JST - 28th June

crap, hang him. insane? no. Japanese? yes
stanoue at 10:48 AM JST - 28th June

Funny how his name was withheld because found insane... although I bet when he was arrested his name was plastered everywhere (they scream suspect's names from the rooftops) - we just need to hunt the news 4 years ago.
Mex at 04:09 PM JST - 28th June

how can be possible? if he prepare everything for the kilings? do you want to be his neigbor one day?
serindipity at 05:59 PM JST - 28th June

Unbelievable! Of course he's bloody insane! He killed his parents and sister. It took them four years to determine this!?!? Now, he won't hang and he'll live out the rest of his life in a nursing home having all his needs pampered. Nice!
farhaan at 08:54 PM JST - 28th June

Then hang this insane man who is so danger to the society.
Triumvere at 09:07 PM JST - 28th June

So what happens to him now?

It would seem best that he was invoulentarily committed.
YadotNapaj at 10:01 PM JST - 28th June

He is going to serve as an advisor to Tsuyoshi Shimakura.

Shimakura is the head of the Shimonoseki city education board in Yamaguchi, who recently told officials of a Korean school that Japan’s 1910-1945 colonial rule of the Korean Peninsula ‘‘contradicts a historical fact,’’

Shima-chan says, ‘‘We cannot accept that because the part about colonial rule contradicts a historical fact,’’ they said.

There ya' go.
Molenir at 08:46 AM JST - 29th June

He'll probably be released next week having been "miraculously" cured. Basically he gets away with 3 murders, and receives no punishment for it. Now thats Justice, Japanese style! Too bad hes not a foreigner, he'd be danging from a noose right about now.
RepublicofTexas at 05:22 PM JST - 29th June

Unbelievable! Of course he's bloody insane! He killed his parents and sister.

I agree, anyone who murders another person is to some degree insane. He's a danger to society and there's no hope for his rehabilitation (killed his whole family), so he should just be executed. Ridiculous.
betterdays at 07:32 PM JST - 29th June

So it means insane people can go around murdering people and go scot free,,,this part of law should seriously be revisited