Japan: Capital crimes soon to lose statute; Diet to heed demands of the victimized, ensure culprits can't evade justice over time

The Democratic Party of Japan-led government recently approved a bill to abolish the statute of limitations on crimes that could be punishable by hanging in a move experts say signals a major shift in the justice system.

The bill, which would amend the Criminal Procedure Law and the Penal Code, also would lift the maximum statute of limitations to 30 years for crimes punishable by life imprisonment, to 20 years for crimes punishable by 20 years of imprisonment, and to 10 years for crimes punishable by lesser prison terms.

The bill is based on proposals submitted to the justice minister in February by the ministry's Legislative Council. They discussed the revision based on the findings of the study group that worked under the previous Liberal Democratic Party-led government.

Observers said the bill, to be submitted to the current Diet session, will be passed by the end of June because the LDP, now the largest opposition force, is unlikely to vote against it.

Following are basic questions and answers about the statute of limitation and what led to the planned revisions:

What is the statute of limitations and why is it in place?

The statute demarcates the period in which specific legal action, namely prosecution, can be pursued.

According to the Justice Ministry, the general assumption is the statute exists because with the passage of time, evidence in crimes is lost, making it more difficult to file charges and lessening the chances for a fair trial.

The social demand that a culprit be brought to justice over a crime also wanes with the passage of time, the ministry said.

In 2007, the statute of limitations expired for 58 murders, 20 arsons, 146 robberies and 78 rapes, according to ministry statistics.

When was the statute of limitations established?

The system dates to the 1880 Criminal Procedure Law, based on recommendations by Gustave Emile Boissonade de Fontarabie, a French jurist who was invited by the Imperial government to assist Japan in compiling various codes.

At the time, perpetrators of heinous crimes, including murder, robbery and rape, would not face prosecution if they evaded justice for 10 years. The statute underwent minor revisions up until the end of World War II.

Then came the Criminal Procedure Law of 1948, which set a 15-year statute of limitations for crimes subject to the gallows, a 10-year statute for crimes subject to life imprisonment and a seven-year statute for crimes that could warrant a prison term exceeding 10 years.

These statutes remained until 2004, when they were extended amid demands for harsher punishment for heinous crimes.

Under the revised code, the statute for crimes punishable by death was extended to 25 years, that for crimes subject to life imprisonment was increased to 15 years, and crimes warranting sentences of 15 years or more were boosted from seven to 10 years.

Are there exclusions to the prescribed statutes?

Yes. By law the statute is suspended if a suspect flees abroad.

It can also be put on hold for an alleged offender until the trial of an accused accomplice is completed.

Why are the statutes again under review, and the one for capital crimes being abolished?

People victimized by crimes have been demanding an end to the statute and have complained that they have been left out of the justice system. This pushed LDP-led administrations to begin considering heeding their demands.

Sora no Kai, a nationwide group of murder victims' families, has been demanding that the statute for murder be abolished and, if not, at least suspended while investigations into slayings continue. In some of the slayings of their loved ones, no arrests have been made.

"We have felt a contradiction between the fact that the law allows a culprit to lead a life without punishment, despite claiming the precious life of another," they said in a statement to the ministry's Legislative Council. "Don't laws exist to protect the rights of people to pursue a happy life? Does the law protect the rights of a person who took someone's life?"

The group also wants a system established that allows the next of kin of murder victims to sue the government for compensation for failing to protect the life and property of its citizens.

Compared with the 2004 revision, the current bill would not only abolish the statute on capital crimes but would cover crimes that took place before the expected changes, as long as the statute hasn't expired.

The revisions would not be applied to closed cases.

Also, one reason for abolishing the statute on heinous crimes is that forensic science, particularly DNA analysis, has advanced to the point where it is possible to solve some cold cases.

Are there concerns about abolishing the statute for capital offenses or suspending it amid ongoing investigations?

Attorneys have claimed that ending the statute would make it difficult for them to defend clients because, for example, the memories of witnesses may have faded and evidence may be lost due to the passing of time.

The Japan Federation of Bar Associations said a better option would be to hone the investigative skills of law enforcement so cases can be resolved more promptly.

The federation also wants the government to provide greater support to people victimized by crime, including compensation and providing more information related to investigations.

The lawyers said it is too soon to change the statutes, because the effects from the revisions 5 years ago have yet to be assessed.

Experts also say law enforcement personnel, finances and other resources are limited, making it hard to justify open-ended investigations in the event there are no time limits.

The group Higaisha to Shihou wo Kangaerukai, made up of families of crime victims, said not all relatives share the same view, and some want to move on with their lives if investigations drag on for years without resolution. Some would be satisfied if authorities reported to them about the progress of their probes.

How about the statute system in other countries?

In the United States, for example, statutes may vary from state to state, but when it comes to murder, there is no statute, as well as in cases of federal capital offenses punishable by death, certain sex offenses and terrorism.

For many other federal-level crimes, prosecution must generally begin within 5 years from their commission. Exceptions to this include 10 years in cases of arson and 20 years for thefts of artworks.

As part of the European Union, where there is no death penalty, Germany, for example, has a 30-year statute on crimes punishable by life in prison, a 20-year statute for offenses warranting sentences of at least 10 years and a 10-year statute for crimes that merit at least a 5-year stretch.

Source: The Japan Times, March 30, 2010

Comments

Taylor Parker becomes 7th woman on death row in Texas

Taylor Parker is set to become the 7th woman on death row in Texas, following her sentencing Wednesday in Bowie County for the capital murder of Reagan Hancock and the kidnapping her unborn baby, Braxlynn Sage. The baby did not survive. The last woman to be handed a death sentence in the state was Kimberly Cargill in June 2012 for the slaying of her developmentally disabled babysitter in Smith County, who was set to testify against her in a custody battle. None of the women currently on death row in Texas are scheduled for execution. According to the Texas Department of Criminal Justice, 6 women have been executed in Texas since the Supreme Court reinstated the death penalty in 1976, more than any other state, according to Death Penalty Information Center. The last woman to be executed in the U.S. was Lisa Montgomery in January 2021. It was the first execution of a female inmate carried out by the federal government since 1953, and her case is chillingly reminiscent of Parker’s. She wa...

Singapore | Ministry of Home Affairs refutes claims that death penalty was discussed during visit by Israel's security ministry

The Ministry of Home Affairs says discussions with the Israeli government involved the sharing of best practices in emergency response, crime prevention, and forensics. Issues relating to the death penalty “were never part of the meeting and were not discussed." SINGAPORE: The Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) on Friday (Sep 11) refuted claims by an Israeli media outlet that the death penalty was discussed during a visit by an Israeli delegation in May. The Haaretz newspaper reported on Sep 7 that a delegation comprising representatives from the Israel Prison Service and National Security Ministry made a “secret visit” to Singapore that month.

Tennessee | Christa Pike Requests Clemency Ahead of September 30 Execution Date; Experts’ Amicus Brief Points to ‘Substantial Risk’ of Re-traumatization

Lawyers for Christa Pike, the only woman on Tennessee’s death row, filed a 226-page clemency petition with Governor Bill Lee, asking him to commute her death sentence to life in prison without the possibility of parole ahead of her September 30 execution date. Ms. Pike’s clemency petition outlines the case her team has built over decades of appeals: her actions at 18 years old cannot be separated from a childhood marked by repeated rape, sexual abuse, and neglect that went unaddressed by the adults and state systems meant to protect her. Once incarcerated, Ms. Pike was diagnosed with bipolar disorder and post-traumatic stress disorder.

Texas executes LeJames Norman

Texas kills man by lethal injection in state’s fifth execution this year A man convicted over the shooting deaths of 3 people was executed on Wednesday in Texas, while another execution scheduled for the same time in Georgia was halted by a judge. It’s the 5th execution in Texas this year. Georgia has yet to put anyone to death this year. The nation’s busiest death chamber is in Florida, which accounted for more than 1/2 the 25 executions already carried out in the US this year.

Alabama executes Jeffery Lee

MONTGOMERY, Ala. (WBMA) — Alabama has executed Jeffery Lee, nearly three decades after he was convicted in the 1998 killings of two people during a pawnshop robbery in rural Dallas County. Lee, 49, was put to death by lethal injection Thursday evening at William C. Holman Correctional Facility in Atmore. His execution came three months after a federal judge blocked Alabama's plans to execute him using nitrogen gas. He was pronounced dead at 6:22 p.m. Central Time, according to the office of Governor Kay Ivey.

Alabama | Lethal injection for double murderer set for Thursday after court blocked nitrogen hypoxia execution in June

Alabama plans to execute Jeffery Lee on Thursday via lethal injection after a down-to-the-wire decision by the federal courts halted his death by nitrogen hypoxia in June. In response, Gov. Kay Ivey set the 30-hour window for the execution to be carried out by lethal injection beginning at 12 a.m. on Thursday, September 17, and expiring at 6 a.m. on Friday, September 18. Barring any further court action, the execution will take place at Holman Correctional Facility in Atmore.

Florida to execute William Thompson after nearly 48 years on death row

On Sept. 11, Gov. Ron DeSantis issued a death warrant for William Thompson, convicted of the 1976 kidnapping, rape, and murder of 23-year-old Sally Ivester. Thompson, now 74, and another man were staying in a Miami Beach hotel room with Ivester and another woman, according to court records. After Ivester was unable to get money from her mother, the men beat and tortured her, prosecutors said. She died from internal bleeding and multiple injuries. Thompson was convicted in 1978 of kidnapping, rape, and first-degree murder.

He Spent 27 Years on Death Row as a Wrongfully Convicted Man. What Comes Next?

23-hour solitary confinement. 115-degree heat. Jimmie Duncan is haunted by the decades he spent in Louisiana’s Angola Prison—and how, even after being released, he still isn’t truly free. Jimmie “Chris” Duncan wiped the sweat off his forehead as he assessed his temporary home from the parking lot of a rundown motel in central Louisiana. Sure, there’s drug dealing and prostitution, he said on a recent summer afternoon. And he suspected his neighbors were cooking meth on a floor below the room he paid $350 a week to rent.

Afghanistan | Signs that horrific brutality is set to return

Kneeling next to a ditch, deep in the rugged mountains of Afghanistan, a 22-year-old woman draws her last breath in a 'desert court' before she is shot in the back with an AK-47. Her executioner? Likely her hardline militant husband, in what the Taliban consider an 'honour killing'. It took less than an hour to decide Najiba had been adulterous – although it has been suggested this accusation was fabricated to protect her husband's reputation. Adultery is a crime that deserves capital punishment under the Taliban's strict interpretation of Sharia law. Fourteen years on from her death, little is known about her story, like many women slowly being erased from the fabric of Afghan society.

Florida executes Daniel Owen Conahan Jr.

In Florida’s 15th execution this year, man put to death for killing linked to ‘Hog Trail Murders’ A Florida man convicted in one of a series of suspected killings that became known as the “Hog Trail Murders” in the 1990s was put to death Thursday, becoming the state’s 15th person executed this year. Daniel Owen Conahan Jr., 72, was pronounced dead at 6:12 p.m. after receiving a 3-drug lethal injection at Florida State Prison near Starke. He had been sentenced to die for the 1996 kidnapping and strangling of Richard Allen Montgomery, whose mutilated body was found in a wooded southwest Florida area where authorities found the remains of at least 6 people over a 3-year span.

Death Penalty News

Search This Blog