Tokyo courts reject over 10% of detention requests

April 28, 2018

Tokyo- Tokyo District Court and Tokyo Summary Court together rejected 12.69 percent of public prosecutors' applications to detain crime suspects for continued interrogations during 2017, Jiji Press learned Saturday.

The courts' rejection rate exceeded 10 percent for the first time on record dating back to 1985, apparently reflecting a change in attitudes among judges toward the detention of suspects, according to Supreme Court sources.

The average rejection rate among courts across the country rose close to 5 percent, with the rate for Kumamoto District Court in southwestern Japan at 12.16 percent, also topping 10 percent.

Cases with relatively high rejection rates included groping, or sexually touching strangers' bodies without their consent, as well as violence among drunken people, shoplifting, and obstructing official duties.

The number of such cases was particularly large in the coverage area of Tokyo District Court, providing a reason for the high rejection rate in the capital.

"Rising rejection rates are partly attributable to the Supreme Court's 2014 and 2015 rulings in favor of district court decisions not to approve the detention of suspects in cases of groping on a train and embezzlement by a guardian of an adult," a veteran judge said.

Backing this view, the nationwide average rejection rate rose to 4.9 percent in 2017 from above 1 percent between 2008 and 2013. Tokyo District Court's rate climbed above 9 percent in 2015 and 2016 from 6.21 percent in 2013.

"The number of suspects who hire lawyers before being detained may be increasing," lawyer Kenjiro Nieda said, referring to a possible reason for the uptrend.

"Courts reject detention requests mainly in minor cases, and investigations are unlikely to be affected significantly," a prosecution source said. "Courts may be hoping to eliminate allegations of cozy ties with prosecutors." Jiji Press