Ex-member of KAT-TUN arrested for marijuana possession

rolling paper used for inhalation

Love it! Explanations don't come much more awkward than that. Although, it would be better if it read, "rolling paper for annihilation"

Good lord, a small amount of a natural organic matter + a small amount of talent= news?

So would Tanaka get lock up for 23 days if he continue to deny ? Will he get bail ? I remember recently former world Moto champion Wayne Garden was video abusing a driver ( road rage ) which he deny and was lock up for 14 days . I assume he got bail.

Fast fast forward to suspended sentence, nothing to see here

Oh no! Better declare martial law. What was it, 1 entire gram!?

Science journals are being FLOODED with articles showing left and right the proven medical benefits of CBD and THC. Like so many issues in Japan, 20 to 30 years behind the rest of the world, I fear this is one that will Japan stagnate on for more like 50 to 75 years.

I mean... even the mere whisper of something as outrageous suggesting government supervised medical research on medical marijuana will land you in jail in Japan. Just ask Saya Takagi.

Robert, are you implying that Tanaka has cancer? If not, then I guess he must just be an idiot. Seriously, anyone who knows Japanese laws on marijuana and still chooses to smoke it is nothing more than that.

btw , all those medicinal benefits you're touting have yet to be proven and the jury's still out over whether any purported benefits would outweigh the negative effects of adding one more addictive carcinogen to your daily dose.

Legalize it.

sourpuss Today 07:57 pm JST

btw , all those medicinal benefits you're touting have yet to be proven and the jury's still out over whether any purported benefits would outweigh the negative effects of adding one more addictive carcinogen to your daily dose.

Wrong, actually. Government run tests in both the USA and Europe have found marijuana to be conclusively helpful in a range of conditions from glaucoma to Meniere's disease and has, in laboratory tests in California, been found to shrink cancer cells. As well as all of this, it has been measured as 114 times safer for the human body to ingest over protracted periods of time than alcohol.

So, what are police saying about the reason they stopped him and searched his car?

Did he give consent to the search?

Having marijuana may be illegal but if the police broke the law in order to stop and search his vehicle randomly they are worse crooks than he'll ever be.

Erosion of rights. Shibuya police have too much free time - they need their budget severely slashed.

btw , all those medicinal benefits you're touting have yet to be proven and the jury's still out over whether any purported benefits would outweigh the negative effects of adding one more addictive carcinogen to your daily dose.

I know MS sufferers who take it to ease the symptoms and it does help.

I also know a campaigner who's child suffers from a rare condition that involves severe seizures every day and the only medicine that has any effect on the illness is the drug. Pure anecdotage, I realise but I'm not making it up.

Legalize or don't legalize is beside the fact. He broke the law so he's a criminal.

Proven in my case. My alcoholic disable brother who has server epilepsy use to be drug out 24/7 on valium. I heard of the benefits of pot and decide to feed some to my brother. Now it is part of his daily diet. He has no fitting or craving alcohol for 3 years. Were before fitting 20 time a day. Now he out of hospital and living independently. Saving the Government heaps and way better quality of life. That what really counts.

Legalize or don't legalize is beside the fact. He broke the law so he's a criminal.

Ever watch in-pixelated pornographers? Then you're a criminal in Japan. Ever danced in a dark club after midnight? Then you're a criminal in Japan. Ever accidentally ripped a bank note? Then you're a celriminal in Japan.

Your logic is too simplistic here. The public policy of criminal laws is to prevent harm to society. This means that criminal laws that don't prevent harm are doing more harm than good.

My brother used to consume cannabis and he became a paradite to society. We got rules if youndont want to follow them, then get out to the middle of the sea to consume anything you want to

@sourpuss

"all those medicinal benefits you're touting have yet to be proven and the jury's still out". That was over TEN YEARS ago. They jury has very much come back on that one my friend. Do you really think 29 states and DC would legalize MEDICAL marijuana on a whim? You talk about carcinogen in the medicine. Do you really think marijuana is the only medicine with side effects. I happen to be on a medicine right now, that has been around for 20 years and is taken by around 1 million people. Guess what one of its known sides effects is, a rare type of terminal leukemia. But without this medicine, me and the people on it would have no quality of life so it's worth the risk. The same goes with medical marijuana, to treat epilepsy or Crohn's.

Ever watch in-pixelated pornographers? Then you're a criminal in Japan. Ever danced in a dark club after midnight? Then you're a criminal in Japan. Ever accidentally ripped a bank note? Then you're a celriminal in Japan.

From what I remember, the law regarding dancing has since been abolished.

Osaka_Doug and paradoxbox, they quite often conduct search cars that found just stopped or parked around Shibuya. My guess is for Kat Tun is just one result after their many attempt in searching cars without able to find anything at all.

My brother used to consume cannabis and he became a paradite to society. We got rules if youndont want to follow them, then get out to the middle of the sea to consume anything you want to

I'm sorry for your brother. There are always casualties - same with alcohol. But would you tell sufferers of MS, epilepsy, those suffering from the after effects of chemo and so on to get out into the middle of the sea?

Are the rules always right?

I totally agree with Tahoochi and I am surprised by all the pro marijuana comments here.

I totally agree with Tahoochi and I am surprised by all the pro marijuana comments here.

Why? It has medicinal benefits and is no more harmful than alcohol. Everything in moderation. There will always be people who abuse their intake, I don't think anyone would deny that.

The cops generally drive around looking for patterns of suspicious behaviour.

On TV they have played CCTV footage of how Tanaka was caught. He came driving up a rather narrow road; a few seconds later a police car passed him in the opposite direction. Koki Tanaka sped up as he passed the police vehicle, as if to escape, so they did a U-turn and went after him.

There are plenty of people who can benefit or at least enjoy cannabis without any problems. But these people are not allowed to simply because the government does not want to allow it. That's not right.

For some weak people who cannot control themselves, cannabis can be problematic, but that is also true for alcohol, tobacco, video games, sugar, ...

The government should not have the right to stop people from consuming it in the privacy of their own home.

How about in your car?

How about in your car?

Personally, I'd take a dim view of anyone driving whilst intoxicated. But if the lad was just carrying it like a 6 pack takeaway, that's his business. Well, until the law got involved.

From the J press. The cops found the zigzags and a bag of buds in the well between the front seats. He denies it is his, but he has admitted to mixing tobacco & grass and smoking about 10 spliffs a day.

Your logic is too simplistic here. The public policy of criminal laws is to prevent harm to society. This means that criminal laws that don't prevent harm are doing more harm than good.

@Swift_Justice: My logic is simplistic because the jury is still out on the pros and cons of MJ. There's a lot of "may do this", and "could cause that". Medicinal use and recreational use are two COMPLETELY different things IMO.

Then there's the people who compare it to alcohol or tobacco, and say it's less harmful but could bring in a lot of income and trade... IMO, when you have any product that can be chemically addictive and can be easily abused, the pros and cons should undergo EXTENSIVE review of whether or not it would be a positive for society. That's why the US federal law still considers possession of MJ ILLEGAL.

With all of that said, I have never said that I am against legalizing MJ, but the fact of the matter is, this idiot who "had it all" (money, fame, etc.) knew it is illegal, and now he's a criminal. My logic may be simplistic (in your eyes), but is it wrong?

This is a really funny story, as I am at a Starbucks coffee right now in Los Angeles and 2 people just lit up a joint all while police officers are walking by. No problems and really nobody cares.

My logic may be simplistic [ ], but is it wrong?

In relation to my point regarding the public policy of criminal laws. You see, jury is not still out on the medicinal benefits of marijuana. When synthetic analogues of cannabinoids are created with the blessing of the FDA and approved for use, it means marijuana has medicinal value.

https://www.drugabuse.gov/publications/drugfacts/marijuana-medicine

It's usually the joy-riders who jump on the legalization bandwagon pointing to the benefits of medicinal use. Use for treating illness is a completely different barrel of monkeys from government-approved legalization for all including so-called "recreational" users. Just because alcohol and tobacco are "just as bad" doesn't mean that MJ should be legalized. It's just not a propelling reason. The risks from use by young people are significant and must be considered. Sure young people abuse alcohol and tobacco already, but do we need yet another potentially harmful substance readily approved by the government? Decriminalization and legalization are not the same thing.

@Swift justice: He is a criminal. This is my point. Am I right or am I wrong?