Underage Sex OK If It's Sincere

[Mulboyne]

There doesn't appear to be a story available in English yet but several Japanese news sources (Asahi, ZAKZAK and Livedoor News ) are reporting a surprising verdict in an underage sex case. Police arrested a 32 year old salaryman in Aichi prefecture on suspicion of having sex with an underage girl. The 17 year old high school student met the man when she started working part time at a restaurant operator where he was a vice-president. The man, married with three children, began dating the girl in April of last year. In June, he went with her to a local cinema, took her for dinner and later went to a Nagoya love hotel for sex. Some of the reports say they went to hotels on a total of seven occasions. The girl's mother found out about the relationship and took her along to report the matter to the police. The man was arrested and prosecutors brought the case to trial, seeking a conviction and a fine of 400,000 yen. In spite of the overwhelming factual evidence, the court on Wednesday handed down a not guilty verdict.

What appears to have been in the man's favour is that judges believed the relationship was sincere. The presiding judge stated that there is a difference between 「淫行」("obscenity") and 「純愛」("innocent love") although he recognized the fine line he was drawing. He believed that the man's affair was certainly adulterous but the laws against exploitation of minors were not drawn up to outlaw such activity. He believed there was sufficient evidence that the two had sincere feelings for each other which resulted in consensual sexual intercourse. Legal experts were surprised by the verdict since it appears to set a precedent. However, they played down the idea that the court has drawn up a paedophile's charter. They note that most cases of underage sex involve clear exploitation, no evidence of any relationship history, a minor who has run away from home or, most often, some form of compensation. Evidence of any of the above would have seen a guilty verdict.

[kurohinge1]

. . . (Asahi, ZAKZAK and Livedoor News ) are reporting a surprising verdict in an underage sex case.

. . . the court on Wednesday handed down a not guilty verdict.

. . . [The presiding judge] believed that the man's affair was certainly adulterous but . . . there was sufficient evidence that the two had sincere feelings for each other which resulted in consensual sexual intercourse . . .

Hands up who thinks the presiding judge has some "skeletons in his closet" and is just feathering his own nest in case they're found.

[FG Lurker]

I'd say her age had something to do with it as well. 17...18...not a lot of difference. It's not like she was some JHS student.

[amdg]

[amdg]

Can't edit at work, so let's just pretend I spelt that all really well.

[Gilligan]

[Jack]

You don't know what the exact law reads like right? Although there may be a "Law" there may also be what's called "the spirit of the Law" in the preamble to the law. So if the spirit of the law is to protect the exploitation of minors then in this case there was no exploitation and the judge is right to take that into consideration. You can blindly follow the law but a good judge also looks at the spirit of the law and puts the crime in context.

The same instance goes when you kill someone in self-defense. Killing someone is against the law, but if you clearly adiosed that person in self-defense, in this part of the world, you are off the hook even though you killed someone which is against the law.

[Mulboyne]

Mainichi: Hokkaido government official gets slap on wrist for sexual relationship with girl, 13

A Hokkaido Prefectural Government official has been handed a suspended prison term for having sexual relations with a 13-year-old girl. The Sapporo District Court sentenced Hiroyuki Ishikawa, 33, an official with the prefectural government's local taxation office in Fukagawa, to one year in prison, suspended for three years, for violating the anti-child prostitution law. During hearings, his defense lawyer had claimed that Ishikawa was innocent. "He neither knew that the girl was under 18 nor promised to pay her for sex." Judge Iichiro Sakata dismissed the defense counsel's claim. "The girl clearly looked under 18." He also said the girl's statement that Ishikawa had promised to pay her can be trusted. Ishikawa was convicted of having sexual relations with the girl, who was 13 years old at the time, at a hotel in Shiroishi-ku, Sapporo, in early December last year, and promised to pay her 20,000 yen, while knowing that she was under 18.

[omae mona]

So can we conclude that if your promise to make payment is sincere, then you can get a suspended sentence?

[GomiGirl]

This is outrageous. The judge has stated that he was obviously doing the wrong thing and yet he is not being punished. Why aren't her parents creating a fuss about this?

[amdg]

You don't know what the exact law reads like right? Although there may be a "Law" there may also be what's called "the spirit of the Law" in the preamble to the law. So if the spirit of the law is to protect the exploitation of minors then in this case there was no exploitation and the judge is right to take that into consideration. You can blindly follow the law but a good judge also looks at the spirit of the law and puts the crime in context.

The same instance goes when you kill someone in self-defense. Killing someone is against the law, but if you clearly adiosed that person in self-defense, in this part of the world, you are off the hook even though you killed someone which is against the law.

It amazes me that you think you have something to contribute. Practically everything you said above is wrong.

[Taro Toporific]

So can we conclude that if your promise to make payment is sincere, then you can get a suspended sentence?

For hundreds of years in Japan, "condolence payments" (soltarium???) are the STANDARD Japanese way such sex offenses were handled.

[Jack]

It amazes me that you think you have something to contribute. Practically everything you said above is wrong.

Oh really? And what makes you such an authority?

[amdg]

BORK!

[Jack]

BORK!

Get a grip on yourself man. There is such a thing as the "spirit of the law" wich may get you off the hook in certain circumstances.

A famour Canadian Prime Minister "Pierre Trudeau" in his younger days (now dead) as a lawyer in Montreal had received a traffic ticket because he had not made a complete stop at a stop sign. He went to court and argued that while he did not make a full stop he did make a constructive stop and met the spirit of the Law thus ensuring that he did not bump into other cars. In Canada they talk about this case as soon as you get into law school. Yes, I have been to Law school though I never graduated. There are circumstances when you are off the hook even if you commit what looks like a crime just as this guy fucking a young girl. The judge appears right in this case.

[Doctor Stop]

You've never been to Japan before, have you Jack?

[Jack]

You've never been to Japan before, have you Jack?

Is that a serious question? I haven't been to Japan since April, no. I visit Tokyo 4 to 6 times a year. What's your point?

[Doctor Stop]

Let's step back a bit.

Please explain how a 33 year old prefectural tax officer had sexual relations with a 13 year old girl, with the promise of 20,000 yen, and followed the "spirit of the law". Was it in self defence?

Bonus points for citing a source for your "Pierre Trudeau" anecdote, and explaining how it would apply in a civil law country like Japan.

[Jack]

Let's step back a bit.

Please explain how a 33 year old prefectural tax officer had sexual relations with a 13 year old girl, with the promise of 20,000 yen, and followed the "spirit of the law". Was it in self defence?

Bonus points for citing a source for your "Pierre Trudeau" anecdote, and explaining how it would apply in a civil law country like Japan.

My point is we don't know all the evidence the judge heard. What we know is what has been reported. The judge obviously has heard all the facts and he made up his mind which I am reluctant to second guess from my office in Canada.

The source of my anecdote is my Law class. The province of Quebec in Canada uses the Civil Law system while Canada uses Common Law. The anecdote that I illustrated better applies in a common law system because common law leaves more room for interpretation. Civil law clearly states the rules which are pretty much cast in stone. That's why it's very important to understand the preamble to the Law. I admit that in this case I don't know what the law in Japan states and given this situation which could enflame emotions and the judge knowing that rendered his judgement. So there must have been something more.

[American Oyaji]

Why aren't her parents creating a fuss about this?

Maybe because they are poor and got paid off.

[amdg]

Maybe because they are poor and got paid off.

Yes, It smells like there was payment of some kind in both of these cases.

[Mulboyne]

My point is we don't know all the evidence the judge heard. What we know is what has been reported. The judge obviously has heard all the facts and he made up his mind which I am reluctant to second guess from my office in Canada.

Well, you aren't just saying "We don't know, so we can't say anything", you are making the case that the law probably supports the judges interpretation so the judge is right (in the case of the not guilty verdict which started this thread). However, there are lawyers groups in Japan who are familiar with the law who have taken strong exception to the judge's decision. Bear in mind also that this case came to court which means more than it does in most other countries because of the high conviction rate in Japan: the prosecution will only bring a case if they are highly confident of getting a guilty verdict and that confidence is based on how judges have interpreted the law in the past.

The "age of consent" in Japan is actually as low as 13 but, confusingly, that law is superceded by the definition of a minor which is generally held to be under 18. That explains why the the 20 year-old husbands of 16 year-old mothers don't go to jail. If the minor has parental consent, more often than not obtained retrospectively, then there is no reason for police to get involved. You can't pimp your kids, though: the law is explicit that prostitution with a minor is illegal.

The prosecution brought their case under this law (Japanese). More specifically, they brought it under 愛知県青少年保護育成条例 which is the variant that applies in Aichi. Each prefecture has its own version of the law and it is designed to protect minors from abuse. The reason the prosecutors believed they had this guy bang to rights is that there was no parental consent for the relationship. We have no idea whether the mother tried to sort things out with the defendant before or after involving the police but it is clear that the case was brought since there was no consent. Additionally, this guy was the girl's superior in the workplace and that relationship provides the potential for abuse. For one, it provides a reason why a man may not feel the need to offer payment for sex. Under the way the law has been interpreted to date, both of those were sufficient grounds for a conviction.

The prosecutors' concern is that the not guilty verdict has set a precedent. In the absence of parental consent, a man with workplace seniority to a minor can apparently have sex with her if he takes the girl out on a few dates beforehand and has sex on multiple occasions. His "sincerity" is also not compromised by the fact he is already married with children.

The age of consent in the UK is 16 so this bloke's actions wouldn't get anything other than social disapproval, if that, in my own country. However, if we are talking about how the law stands in Japan and how it has been applied to date, then this guy would usually be guilty. Bear in mind also that it wasn't an issue of going to jail: the prosecutors were only calling for a fine so they had already recognized the mitigating circumstances.

[Doctor Stop]

Read this and see if you get the pattern, Jack:

OTSU -- The eldest son of former Finance Minister Masayoshi Takemura was handed a suspended prison sentence Monday after being convicted of growing and possessing cannabis.

The son, Shunichi Takemura, 44, a former professor at Newton College in Shiga Prefecture, was sentenced to three years' imprisonment, suspended for five years, in the ruling at the Otsu District Court.

Takemura was convicted of growing 16 cannabis plants in pots at his home between March and August last year. He also had 143 grams of marijuana hidden at his home on Feb. 4, according to the ruling.

In addition, Takemura was convicted of stealing and illegally acquiring about 40 items including medicine and a rear-view mirror from a pharmacy and a car-parts retailer in Koka, Shiga Prefecture.

http://mdn.mainichi-msn.co.jp/national/news/20070611p2a00m0na019000c.html

Want a suspended sentence? It's easy if you've got kone.

[American Oyaji]

woah...talk about hardcore misscarriage of justice.

[Doctor Stop]

Come one, anything to do with cannabis is a serious offense in Japan, as is theft, unless you've got kone. That's the problem here, there are different rules for those with connections to the ones in power and different rules for those who don't.

[Greji]

Come one, anything to do with cannabis is a serious offense in Japan, as is theft, unless you've got kone. That's the problem here, there are different rules for those with connections to the ones in power and different rules for those who don't.

Yup! Ain't it wonderful!

[Doctor Stop]

And that's one of the things I like about this country! Don't get me started on the things I don't like about it.

[Mike Oxlong]

CRIME
Jubilo Iwata midfielder Kikuchi arrested for sex with 15-year-old girl

Wednesday, June 13, 2007 at 15:08 EDT

SHIZUOKA — Police arrested professional soccer club Jubilo Iwata midfielder Naoya Kikuchi on Wednesday on suspicion of having sex with a 15-year-old high school girl last month knowing she was a minor. Kikuchi, 22, who played in the 2004 Athens Olympics as a member of Japan's national team, has admitted to the allegation, police said.

Police said Kikuchi had sex with the girl in a car parked on a road in Hamamatsu, Shizuoka Prefecture, in late May. She was on her way home from school by bicycle, police said. They identified Kikuchi after the girl brought them a wallet containing his driver's license, they said. Kikuchi tried to give her 10,000 yen in cash and when he left her, forgot the wallet in the basket of her bicycle.

Insincere bastard!