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© KYODO47 trainee police officers punished for underage drinking, smoking
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Skeptical
Don't you think that making them go to bed without supper was a little extreme?
snowymountainhell
Agency transparency of incidents & resultant disciplinary actions are, most likely, only the result of:
“The incident was discovered following reports from outside the academy.” -Bob Fosse
Off to a good start.
Cricky
A little draconian. You are considered an adult at 18 now isn’t it?
Bob Fosse
Only for voting rights.
Police uphold the law, if they want to mess around choose another career path.
Cricky
So 18 your an adult but not an adult adult? Old enough to vote but not drink and smoke? Shouldn’t a police officer be at least of adult, adult age to enforce the laws? Seems strange to have junior adults as police.
Gaijinjland
Seems kind of harmless. The students could have just gone out and bought alcohol and smokes by themselves. Nobody checks ID's here anyway.
Good
But they're just 19 year old children, right? Can't be punished.
Bob Fosse
Police training should be as strict and tough as possible. I want to be able to trust the police who will have the right to tell me what to do.
Letting anyone pass will lead to trouble for everyone later on.
purple_depressed_bacon
Oh boo hoo. Making a mountain out of a molehill as usual. They act like these "minors" did something heinous. It's not like Japan makes it hard to procure alcohol and smokes- there are literally vending machines supplying these goods and no ID is checked. 3 months disciplinary action for a harmless night of fun? Excessive. More serious crimes have been given less punishment here.
snowymountainhell
To your point @BobFosse one Kansai area koban had a recent, fatal incident involving a new recruit and a senior, supervising officer: “Letting anyone pass will lead to trouble for everyone later on.” -
Yubaru
Kick them out, if they are the one's who we expect to uphold the law, they should be kicked out of the academy.
This is Japan, and anyone else would be facing much stricter punishments, if an adult on the streets gave alcohol to some teenager they knew, they would get more than a slap on the wrists!
Now if we were in some other country.... this is one of those "no-news here" things!
Yubaru
Alcohol vending machines are nearly non-existent to what they used to be, and without a TASPO card you can not purchase tobacco from a vending machine, been that way for years now!
Yubaru
What an overly generalized statement. I know for a fact your statement here is 100% false.
James
@Gaijinjland
To test your theory
My 15 year old went down the convenient store this morning just to test this theory he walked out with 6 cans of beer and a pack of cigarettes.
I am shocked.
Yubaru
For some reason I have a REALLY hard time believing this, you send your kid to the convenience store on a Sunday morning, with enough cash to buy a six-pack and cigs, by himself no less, and you say he walked out with no problem.
Testing out a a "theory" you read about on JT, with your own kid, who very well could get into trouble for it too.
And your kid agrees to possibly get himself into trouble for you to "prove" or "disprove" of a theory?
What kind of parent are you?
serendipitous1
They can all practice arresting one another!
factchecker
Who cares?!?
Abbey
The future of Japan !
proxy
The best cops are the ones that got into a bit of trouble in their youth and understand human frailties. Getting busted will make them better cops.
vic.M
Under age at 20? I was drinking and smoking at 15. Had my driver license at 15 as well. 65 years later I hardly drink and don't smoke.
borscht
Why is smoking given more detention than drinking?
Mark
Well at least they were not dismissed!!
Bob Fosse
Still driving at 80? Be safe.
Cricky
NO smoking, NO Drinking,…but here strap on this gun.
didou
If this law is working well, I was wondering how student in an university were doing at doing.
A :I am 19, orange juice for me..
B : I am 20, a beer please. Sorry for you A
Ok , I got it. Like at this police academy
Yubaru
I wonder if any of the "smokers" were drinking too, and did they get 5 months of punishment?
snowymountainhell
Yes, somewhat funny movies @Bungle but we all know how reality can sometimes turn out ‘stranger than fiction’. The pre-screening process needs to be more stringent. One J recruit pulled a “Private Pyle” from Full Metal Jacket his first week in the koban with an allegedly gruff, senior partner: “Police officer shot dead in koban; 19-year-old colleague arrested“ - Apr. 12, 2018 -
shogun36
So they’re going to (eventually) “enforce” laws in Japan.
Yet they can’t even follow them. Ok.
Sounds like they’re perfect for being J-Cops.
Welcome to the team!
shogun36
I assume there is NO zero tolerance in the Police Academy in Japan either, right?
Generally this kind of rule breaking would result in expulsion or at least lowering in rank for such actions?
But what’s lower than a trainee? Being kicked out, I’d think.
Alongfortheride
Old enough to be a cop but not old enough to have a beer.
Bob Fosse
In some countries you can be old enough to buy a collection of assault rifles or join the military and kill before you can legally buy a beer.
I prefer Japan’s approach.
William Bjornson
In the U.S., you are old enough, as I was, at your 17th birthday to be trained as a mindless mass murderer...and somehow the lengths of punishments for the two infractions seem backwards because alcohol, statistically, creates way more disease and life issues than tobacco ever could.
TheReds
And they are future policemen of the country when they can't even abide by the law? It is not about the age or if they are already an adult. The law states you can't drink at certain age and they broke it. They should be kicked out because they are to be policemen. Or did they just enter the academy because they can't go anywhere and their ambition is actually different?
Johansawada
It’s hard to take Police in Japan seriously when in the past few months, you read about officers having sex in the koban and one senior officer taking pics of upskirts…. Maybe Discipline is lacking…. So I’m all for punishments on these trainees…
Harry_Gatto
Commandment No: 11. Don't get caught.
Jonathan Prin
Nothing suprising.
But they are humans experiencing life.
They did not hurt anyone, done anyything wrong. I know laughing and enjoying time is suppressed a lot in Japan so they don't know what real life is. Herbivorous/castrated/hikikomori men for a reason.
I drunk and did many out of law stuff but nobody was ever hurt or suffered any damages . Why need for useless punishment when suicide rate is so high for young people in Japan ?
Ah_so
It is a victimless crime - kids having fun. And the drinking age in Japan is absurd anyway. There are lots of laws that people break all the time - crossing the road at a a red man or some infraction of cycling rules that no one knows.
Petty enforcement of laws to kick out those willing to dedicate their careers to the police before they have even started is heavy handed. I suspect if your sentiment was enforced uniformally, every police officer serving today would be kicked out.
Yubaru
Well, after close to 40 I have...And unlike some places in the world where they ID everyone, here they will do it on looks!
Yubaru
Actually the youngster would be held by the police for it too!
BeerDeliveryGuy
God forbid they see what 18 and 19 year olds do in Marine Corps barracks…
Skeptical
Force the miscreants watch 14 hours straight of I'm a Celebrity ... Get Me Out Out of Here without breaks. Just the threat of such punishment should be enough to deter any future misdeeds.
Trinity
They should be expelled. If they can’t obey the law they have no business being police.
wtfjapan
But they're just 19 year old children, right? Can't be punished.
get this girls guys can participate in filmed pornography at the age of 18 in Japan,
but theyre not allowed to have a beer after work
Gaijinjland
@Yubaru. I'm 100% certain they don't check ID's here. I've been living in Japan since I was 15. Never been checked once in 20 years. So I absolutely believe @James that his son was able to buy a six pack and smokes with no problem.
Sheikh Yerboaby
Imagine being 20 and not allowed to drink! LLF.
University would've been a very different experience......my first day, we hit the Students union bar for lunch and didn't make afternoon classes...I was 17.
Sheikh Yerboaby
tbf Japan isn't the only country with mixed up age rules, in the UK you can get married at 16, have a smoke after consummating your marriage but you can't have a celebratory beer at your wedding. You can join the army at 16 but can't vote for the politicos whose policies will put you in harms way until you're 18.....
lostrune2
Lol, so it's like college dorms
Skeeter27
Why are police in Japan even allowed to be police if they are underage?? They should be at least 20 before even given the responsibility to enforce the laws! They are underage so no names will be given if they screw up and break the law!!