Two foreign defendants among first cases to be tried under new lay jury system

Saturday 23rd May, 07:11 AM JST

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Gaijinocchio at 03:56 PM JST - 23rd May

Rodney_King: It's all in good fun! It's hard to express facetiousness on the internet, in text only.

I'm certain that this new lay jury system will be fair and balanced.
Badge213 at 07:53 PM JST - 23rd May

If a terrorist were arrested, we should have a jury full of terrorist peers to judge him? They are the best to "understand" his position right?

Here's a notion, maybe they will be found guilty because...they are actually GUILTY?
BBLeo at 08:00 PM JST - 23rd May

I wonder why prosecution selected first foreign defendants? In a hurry for deportation or hanging. It will be very interesting what will be the outcome of the first case. This will be some sort of concern to cops and prosecution perhaps even judges for innocent people being wrongly accused and punished. Hope that selection of jurors will be good.
elbudamexicano at 08:46 PM JST - 23rd May

The Japanese have to be very careful, especially with how they treat a Mexican national here in the Japanese legal system. Why? There are plenty of Japanese criminals rotting in fine Mexican jails right now. Take your pick, drugs, prostitution etc.. So they will probably end up handing over the Mexican criminal back to the Mexican authorities to trade for a Japanese national now in a Mexican jail.
Patrick Smash at 09:15 PM JST - 23rd May

hakujinsensei, good points, apart from the extra 23 million Japanese you just came up with. Everyone knows no one really has a prayer here if they get to court though, Japanese and non-Japanese alike.
LostinNagoya at 09:57 PM JST - 23rd May

mexicano:

The Japanese have to be very careful, especially with how they treat a Mexican national here in the Japanese legal system.

They have to be careful with everybody, independently of nationalities. But I give you this point, Mexicans should be treated with special care because of your virus.
hakujinsensei at 10:51 PM JST - 23rd May

Patrick_Smash; rough numbers/significant digits... and I am doing my part to add the children the government clamors for ; )

I dont think the legal system is as hopelessly skewed as most say it is. For the most part, nobody goes to trial unless they confess. Foreigners, dont confess, when they wont let you use the toilet, wet your pants, but never confess to a crime that you did not commit. The questioning and investigation methods are definitely 3rd world but that is a police problem, not a court problem.

Without the false confessions balling up the works, things should go smooth even for the jury system in its infancy.
shiratori at 11:08 PM JST - 23rd May

Hakujinsensei wrote: "Without the false confessions balling up the works, things sholud go smooth even for the jury system in its infancy."

Like in OJ Simpson case.And in thousands of others.
ptolemy at 03:21 AM JST - 24th May

Perhaps the two foreign accused should have thought about the strictness of Japanese laws against drug smuggling. They made their choice and will face the consequences. Perhaps a message is being sent not to smuggle drugs here. Ask Sir Paul McCartney about that.

Japan has 0 tolerance for drug smuggling, possession, and dealing. It may be too strict but that is the law. If you want laws changed learn the language, get citizenship, and form an NPO or NGO to change the laws. Until then the laws are as they are.

I do think, however; that the rest of the jury will probably follow the lead of the oldest oyaji or baba on the jury. The gray hair population run everything here, and get their way 100%. My advice to foreigners is to stay clean, carry your ID, and make sure the bike you are on is registered to you. Don't break laws and generally you'll have nothing to worry about. If you want to break the law then go ahead, but don't whine when the punishment gets handed out. Personally, I feel no sympathy for drug smugglers.
kwatt at 08:29 AM JST - 24th May

Japanese jurors must learn this system and get accustomed to this although they might make mistakes about difficult cases. Even in the US, previous jurors made mistakes about sentences of guilty or not guilty. According to an American report there have been about 300 cases of wrong accusations on which previous jurors sentenced guilties since 1989 because previous jurors confessed wrong sentences and real suspects were confessed or found years later. If American jury system makes mistakes then Japanese jury system makes more or less mistakes. No one is perfect.
pointofview at 08:27 PM JST - 24th May

It`s a perfect opportunity to get back at foreigners. They are already done.
societymike at 09:52 AM JST - 25th May

LostinNagoya at 09:57 PM JST - 23rd May But I give you this point, Mexicans should be treated with special care because of your virus.

I lol'd
Monoflow at 07:27 PM JST - 25th May

@mexicano ... I would rather stay in a Japanese Jail, than in a Mexican Jail. The reason is obviously...
Blackops at 03:03 PM JST - 27th May

This is going to be a laugh a minute!
tokyocrawler at 08:08 PM JST - 27th May

Ok if I end up in court I will make sure I apologise profusely, mention that I always divide my rubbish, can tell the diffrence between thai rice and koshihikari rice, and have a wee dog at home that will be lonely without me....there wont be a juror in Japan that could bear to convict me!