A district court in Japan has handed down Japan's first death sentence for a minor in a lay judge court, to a youth who was 18 years old when he murdered 2 women and injured a man.
The defendant was indicted for breaking into a house in Ishinomaki City, Miyagi Prefecture, last February, and
stabbing to death his former girlfriend's sister and friend.
The defendant had admitted to the charges, so the lay judge court was tasked with deciding on punishment.
Prosecutors demanded the death sentence.
In Thursday's ruling, Presiding Judge Nobuyuki Suzuki of the Sendai District Court said the defendant broke into the house with a strong intent to kill anyone who would stop him from taking his ex-girlfriend. The judge called the crime cruel and extremely brutal.
The judge said the defendant said words of repentance but only superficially, and did not recognize the seriousness of his crime. The judge added that it is highly unlikely that the defendant can be rehabilitated.
The judge said the court found that the defendant's age at the time of the crime is no reason for him to escape capital punishment.
2010年11月25日木曜日
2010年10月26日火曜日
First death sentence demanded in lay judge trial
Prosecutors in Tokyo have demanded the death sentence for a man charged with killing 2 women. This is the first such sentencing demand since the lay judge system was introduced in Japan in May of last year.
Prosecutors made the request on Monday in the trial of Koji Hayashi. The 42-year-old man was indicted for killing an employee of an ear-cleaning salon and her grandmother after breaking into their home in August of 2009.
Six people chosen at random among citizens aged 20 or older are serving as lay judges in this trial, and will decide on a ruling along with professional judges.
The defendant was a frequent client of the salon and has admitted to the charges. He said he became desperate after the salon worker, 21-year-old Miho Ejiri, kept avoiding him, and he decided to kill her.
The victims' relatives told the court that they want Hayashi to be sentenced to death.
Defense lawyers say the death penalty is too severe a punishment because Hayashi deeply regrets what he did.
They also argue that Hayashi was mentally unstable at the time of the crime and could not tell right from wrong.
On Tuesday, the lay and professional judges will begin 4 days of discussion on what ruling to hand down.
Prosecutors made the request on Monday in the trial of Koji Hayashi. The 42-year-old man was indicted for killing an employee of an ear-cleaning salon and her grandmother after breaking into their home in August of 2009.
Six people chosen at random among citizens aged 20 or older are serving as lay judges in this trial, and will decide on a ruling along with professional judges.
The defendant was a frequent client of the salon and has admitted to the charges. He said he became desperate after the salon worker, 21-year-old Miho Ejiri, kept avoiding him, and he decided to kill her.
The victims' relatives told the court that they want Hayashi to be sentenced to death.
Defense lawyers say the death penalty is too severe a punishment because Hayashi deeply regrets what he did.
They also argue that Hayashi was mentally unstable at the time of the crime and could not tell right from wrong.
On Tuesday, the lay and professional judges will begin 4 days of discussion on what ruling to hand down.
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