Driver charged after man who refused treatment is found dead 6 weeks after accident

The driver should be released. The man was alive after the accident and refused medical treatment. The police also let the man go untreated. Unfortunate circumstances but that's why people are told to go to the hospital just as a precaution.

the driver will be declared not guilty but thats after losing his job

It says Paramedics, or were the Ambulance drivers? The Police should be investigating the officers involved as they have now become part of the crime. I can see no crime myself but the man has been charged the police were there and allowed it to happen.

The man who refused medical treatment is at fault. The driver tried to get him to at least go to the hospital and be checked out at which time they would have performed head x-rays and possibly a CT scan of the brain which would have showed something. The driver is not responsible for the mans death.

—“Surely this is the police’s fault for judging the man to be well enough not to receive treatment and declaring the case ‘property damage.’”

Indeed! I totally agree with this! Police are equally guilty of "involuntary manslaughter" as the driver is. They are looking for a scapegoat.

mikihouseJul.

the driver will be declared not guilty but thats after losing his job

Why would he lose his job? Unless he caused the accident during his working hours it has nothing to do with his company/organization.

The driver escorted the victim home. A high probability the man might have died within 24 hours of the accident? A blow to the head, the cause. Could it have happened in the apartment? Wouldn't an honest man try to contact the victim? Phone him everyday? And think something is wrong, after a few attempts, and visit?

The man should not be charged with whatever slaughter. He is a responsible citizen, the japanese justice system needs to clean up its labellings. The way I see it, the death was voluntary suicide by the deceased by pure ignorance or whatever reasons he might had, although I do hope he will RIP.

After checking him over, police did not notice any serious wounds and so allowed the man to return home untreated, recording the incident as a traffic accident resulting in minor property damage.

The police are as much responsible for the man's death as is the driver. Charging for involuntary manslaughter is asinine.

dokachin

Why would he lose his job? Unless he caused the accident during his working hours it has nothing to do with his company/organization.

You must be new to Japan...

The cops that let him go home should be arrested not the driver.

The victim took the decision to let himself die (it's a suicide), the police and paramedics accepted his decision (it's professional mistake equivalent to say "OK go..." to a guy on the point of jumping down a big building). But the driver should not be charged for fault. Let his insurance pay.

Unfortunately it's a procedural thing with the police, and with police it's normally procedure first logic second. Poor guy, anywhere else in the world once a person refuses treatment, they are responsible for himself/herself .

Would the man have died in hospital anyway, or were his injuries treatable?

Stories like this baffle me. This further concretes my opinion that the law in Japan is outdated.

The driver did all he could, offered to get an ambulance to go to the hospital, the man refused "You can take a horse to water but you can't make him drink". He then accompanied him home. This is nothing like a "hit-and-run". The driver is NOT at fault, the police are. However, in Japan, it's ALWAYS the driver's fault...

Non sense, he is innocent. Can you force somebody to accept medical treatment? Then they would have charged him with a different crime.

Chalk this up as yet another case of ridiculousness here. How is it you get drunk drivers who kill three kids after pushing them off a bridge who get only a year or so in the klink but then 6 weeks after an accident a man is charged with manslaugther when it was the VICTIM who sole out refused any help?

This is ridiculous. The driver called for help and the deceased refused to be treated, therefore assuming full responsibility for any liability regarding his health thereafter. This is clearly a game of scapegoat and seeking financial reimbursement by the family of the deceased. Hope the judge throws this case out the window. RIP, though this would have probably been avoided if help was accepted, rather than turned away.

While the driver who caused the accident was very co-operative throughout the investigation, due to the complications of the matter, police now have no option but to treat the incident as involuntary manslaughter.

One thing I dislike about Japan, there is no grey area, only black and white.

At first I was with the majority of posters as a gut reaction, but very importantly

A) we were not there and did not see what kind of accident it was (ie hou much the fault of the guy who got hit vs how reckless the driver was), and this is something that is very important to consider,

and B) the fact is the driver caused a grievous bodily injury to someone with his car. The brain is a sensitive and strange organ, and we cannot see the injury right away. Just imagine what would have happened if the driver caused a hairline fracture in the guys's femur: He would've been in pain, would not have been able to walk, the deriver would've been charged with whatever by the cops, had his license suspended/ revoked, and insurance premiums gone up. And no-one would've complained the driver got an unfair shake. And the guy who got hit would be healed in the end.

I agree that he bears some responsibility for refusing to go to the hospital, but the driver is still responsible for hitting someone. Whether manslaughter or some lesser charge.

Now this got my attention:

the driver – who is thought to belong to an organization in the town

What the hell does that mean? Just extraneous irrelevant information? Or yak reference?

A thought for you: if the man was severely injured in the accident (which he no doubt was, given he died withing 24 hrs), it's probable he wasn't in his right mind when refusing treatment.

The brain is a sensitive and strange organ, and we cannot see the injury right away.

Yes, but the police and paramedics are called in case of accident because it's their job to know that, and to make the victim get a check up. In my country, now, whenever there is a human victim, even just a scratch on a hand, they automatically take both drivers to an hospital for blood test (alcohol and drugs). Then doctors will decide to keep you, even to stay overnight, if they hear you have fallen or received a big shock. I know as they kept me nearly a month so I got the explantion 30 times (sledge accident, LOL).

He would've been in pain, would not have been able to walk, the deriver would've been charged with whatever by the cops,

Jails would be crowded if all traffic accidents were treated as assault and manslaughter.

thought to belong to an organization in the town What the hell does that mean?

That just means he is a civil servant. He was probably driving the truck for his job.

Lack of common sense by the police ...continues

As far as i can see it the Driver's only fault is not taking the guy to the Hospital instead of taking him home.

Well, cos,

I understood all you said before you said it, I'm not sure if you are trying to refute me or what. My point is, in the end the guy driving the car has responsibility to the person he injured. The fact that the guy didn't want to go to the hospital, or the cops didn't force him to go, is unfortunate, and perhaps should be mitigating for the driver, but at the end of the day he caused grievous bodily harm to someone. If it were a much smaller injury, everyone would accept the driver's punishment no problem, so this punishment should be accepted too

"organization in the town" maybe you are right, but it is a pretty weird way to put it and have not seen civil servant translated that way before, "organization of town government" etc, maybe, which is what made me think of yaks, an organization in the town.

"organization in the town" maybe you are right, but it is a pretty weird way to put it

団体職員 (dantai shokuin) I think it's a normal term that can cover everything from city library staff to the garbage pick up, passing by elderly help service, not at all 'boryoku dantai' (violent organization = yaks). The media were not told but his occupation is known by the police.

he caused grievous bodily harm to someone. If it were a much smaller injury, everyone would accept the driver's punishment no problem, so this punishment should be accepted too

No, it's not the question. You have civil responsibility for accidents, but if you do everything by the rules, you only have to pay for damages (or insurance does), but even if you must pay millions, you have no criminal record, and you can keep your driving license (that the accident kills someone does not mean the driver was not respecting traffic law). The problem with the "manslaughter" is it's not civilian court, but criminal court, so the guy condemned -even to suspended penalty- would get a criminal record. If you are a lawyer, an accountant, even a bar owner in Japan, you are not allowed to have any criminal record. And if his job is being a chauffeur, he can't do it without a driving license. In some cases, when someone is charged with a crime, he is immediately suspended from job till the end of the trial. So even if he ends up innocent, the damages are huge. Apparently, his lawyers obtained that his anonymity is respected, and maybe he can keep working till he is judged.

Why would he lose his job?

That reason. Plus, some employers would be able to keep a person with a record, but they would prefer firing him to preserve their image.

Unless he caused the accident during his working hours it has nothing to do with his company/organization.

The articles don't precise, and yes, that seems to be the case. But the point is criminal prosecution. I suspect that victim's family or the insurance sued. That would explain "police now have no option but to treat the incident as involuntary manslaughter."

Well I didn't bother to look up the Japanese article, but if that's what was written, the English translation was not clear.

Usually ppl who drive for work and have accidents get demerits or lose their jobs. If they killed someone, I think it is likely they lose their jobs. Never mind criminal charges.

While you (or I) may disagree with the severity of the charges, however, most countries have vehicular homicide or vehicular manslaughter laws. In many countries they have gotten a lot stricter over time, including Japan I believe.

If you disagree with the severity of the penalties, take it up w/ the cops or the courts, not me. Because that doesn't change what I want to say. Which is, while he may have been a responsible person after the accident, and it wasn't a hit-and-run, HE WAS IN AN ACCIDENT WHICH RESULTED IN SOMEONE'S DEATH. So, the normal penalties should apply. That's all. The fact that the death came about later because of the complexity of the brain doesn't change that basic fact. Maybe he should not be doing jobs that involve driving motor vehicles.

The police who arrived at scene should be charged for failing to use vested authority to compell the oldman to seek medical attention, not the driver, who repeatedly insisted the old man go for checkup.****

Can't be manslaughter, there was an intervening act which breaks the cause of death which is the man refusing treatment and the police is just likely at fault due to tortious liability of the public service provider no following through on their duty of care to the victims of the accident.

The victim, who was riding a bicycle and was hit from behind, according to one Japanese news source, allegedly said to the police 「けがはしてない。自分で転んだ」 "I am unhurt. I fell off my bike."

Possibly he wanted nothing to do with the police, or possibly the shock of the accident temporarily erased his memory.

When paramedics arrived at the scene of the accident on April 24, the 50-year-old man was determined not to be taken to hospital.

And the guy died later on from.. deadly wound ? Somebody did not do his job.

The guy probably just didn't realize how badly he'd been hurt. It's not at all unheard of for people to die of head injuries days after they occur and with the person seeming to be okay. Natasha Richardson, Liam Neeson's wife, died of a brain injury 3 days after falling while skiing. She also refused medical treatment immediately after the accident. She wasn't suicidal, as people here keep saying about the man. She simply had no idea how serious head injuries can be. I feel sorry for the driver of the car because it sounds like he tried to be a stand up guy about it but if he caused the accident that caused the injury then what choice is there but to charge him with involuntary manslaughter? It doesn't mean that he'll suffer any real consequences but blaming the victim is a bit ridiculous. I don't know if Japan has a law which forces accident victims to receive medical attention but if not, then how can you really blame the cops? Regardless of whether medical treatment would have saved this guy or not, at the end of the day, he wouldn't be dead if he hadn't been hit by the car.

Although her fall may have first appeared minor - she reportedly refused to be taken to hospital at least twice - the head injury she suffered is a type that, if tended to quickly at a qualified trauma center, can often treated successfully - and can just as easily turn fatal if not treated in time.

The New York City medical examiner's office ruled March 19 that Richardson died from blunt trauma to the head, causing massive internal bleeding in the brain. In such cases, blood from a damaged but still-pumping artery can quickly pool in the brain, creating pressure that must be relieved before irreparable damage is caused.

Should not the Police be charged as well.....Quote: "After checking him over, police did not notice any serious wounds and so allowed the man to return home untreated" It states that the Police "ALLOWED" him to return home....they are even more guilty as they could have made him go to Hospital but they "Allowed" him to leave.

At least that is how I read it..........

John Constantine:

Unless Japan has a law compelling people to receive medical treatment after accidents, what were the police supposed to do? They are not medical professionals and as such would certainly not be able to tell if the man had a serious brain injury by simply looking for an obvious wound. Internal head injuries often leave no exterior marks. I know it's fun and all to blame the Japanese police for everything that goes wrong in the criminal / legal system, but again, unless they are obligated to compel people to undergo medical examination, I fail to see what they did wrong. Do you know with certainty that they can compel people to seek medical help or are you just speculating?