crime

Man gets 18-year prison term for 2017 expressway road rage deaths

29 Comments

The requested article has expired, and is no longer available. Any related articles, and user comments are shown below.

© KYODO

©2024 GPlusMedia Inc.

29 Comments
Login to comment

Convicted December 2018, retried and convicted again, receiving the same 18 year sentence 5 years after the crimes? Where are the 2 surviving victims statements?

Considering the additional anguish they have been put through waiting for justice for their dead parents, certainly the daughters are now of an age for their voices to be heard and to petition for a greater sentence.

If Japanese justice is fair, Ishibashi should serve everyday of this 18 years and the deceased’s daughters heard again before he is ever paroled.

22 ( +29 / -7 )

There is no justice in Japan!!! That gorilla should have been given life for killing two people the way he did!!! Force stopping a car on an expressway in the fast lane at night, deserves nothing less than life behind bars.

23 ( +33 / -10 )

Draggin on long enough for those parentless girls. Damn, Japanese justice is slow.

He needs more time. Let him rot.

25 ( +32 / -7 )

I'm not understanding the outrage, to be honest.

Japan has its own laws and criminal justice system, just as the USA, Mexico, Peru, Jamaica, Switzerland, South Africa, Saudi Arabia, China, Australia, and the rest of the world does. Anyone who's comparing their home country's system to another is making a huge mistake. When you're in a foreign country, be that as a tourist, student, worker, resident, etc, you are bound by the laws of that country, however right, wrong, magnificent, or draconian you think they may be.

All of the "yeah, but..." do not matter. Japan does it the way Japan does it. I suggest you learn to deal with that fact.

-25 ( +14 / -39 )

May their parents now rest in peace and these young women find some degree of solace that justice was finally served.

Should have been a longer sentence for the additional heartache the survivors have had to endure awaiting some kind of conclusion to this unconscionable crime.

Agree that their opinions should be considered before the convicted has any chance of early release and parole.

14 ( +17 / -3 )

I remember they did not have a law in the books that they could charge him with. Thank goodness they’ve sorted this out. What he did was dangerously close to murder.

14 ( +19 / -5 )

Life sentence…end of story!

10 ( +13 / -3 )

The family did not have to stop the car on highway unless ...

Ishibashi used violence and threatened the father despite he kept apologizing right in the middle of highway up until the truck bumped the family car.

And yet, Takashi Takano nitpicking the definition of how exactly is stipulated in the law

-2 ( +9 / -11 )

Takashi Takano is one of defenders of Ghosn , called " Innocent guaranteed contractor"

Ishibashi doesn't look at all afford to pay for this level.

-4 ( +4 / -8 )

Personally I think Ishibashi got off very lightly considering the two deaths he caused and the immeasurable suffering he brought upon the surviving children. I would have liked to see 50 years to life. But this incident did bring a long needed revision in laws pertaining to Aori Unten, and there's some solace in knowing that when he gets out he will have a record and Japanese society will treat him as such. And he will have to carry that for the rest of his miserable life.

9 ( +10 / -1 )

70 years would’ve been more appropriate

6 ( +7 / -1 )

I agree with the outcome but what i don"t understand is why does the justice sistem doesn't act the same way with other cases. Roads in Japan are safer now. That bastard will spend his fertile years single and alone in a prison cell. Taste you own poison devil creature !!

3 ( +5 / -2 )

Kazuho Ishibashi behaviour has to be made an example of.

Throw away the key, for life

The surviving daughters plight is unimaginable.

Losing my Mother and father in such a heinous act of road rage. It would destroy any meaning of life.

6 ( +8 / -2 )

When you're in a foreign country, be that as a tourist

You mad about something? This is a forum where people can give their opinion on things Japan and whatever else is the topic. And since this is Japan, a free country and not China, we can publicly talk about the laws and Japan things we disagree with.

Unless you live in China, I suggest you come to peace with that fact.

9 ( +11 / -2 )

They should change the law ASAP so any recorded evidence of road rage/aori and such be enough to suspend these people's licenses (minimum). I drive in greater Tokyo area a couple of hours every day and I witness multiple cases of acute sociopathy on the road almost every other day. If you go to a police station and show the drive recorder with the clearest images of some psycho cutting you off and passing inches from your motorcycle for absolutely no reason but to terrorize you they will say "so what?". I cant count the days until these psychos will be fearful of the law and vent all their frustrations of their sad lives on something else that doesnt endanger others

4 ( +6 / -2 )

I had the unfortunate encounter with this guy in Kudamatsu, Yamaguchi, in the same year.

He didn't like that I overtook him, and proceeded to stop his car several times in front of mine and others on National Route 2. He drove with his door open, screaming obscenities at me and other drivers.

He was reported by some other road users and apprehended in Tokuyama but clearly he was not detained. I hope upon his eventual release, he's never allowed to drive ever again.

For the lives his actions took and the resulting loss of parents to two girls, his sentence is not long enough.

12 ( +14 / -2 )

@Jadyn Campbell I agree with what you wrote "when you're in a foreign country, be that as a tourist, student, worker, resident, etc, you are bound by the laws of that country, however right, wrong, magnificent, or draconian you think they may be". Some people think they can just go to a country expect the same way of life where they came from and make change, if you don't like it simply go back!

I'm not understanding the outrage, to be honest.

Japan has its own laws and criminal justice system, just as the USA, Mexico, Peru, Jamaica, Switzerland, South Africa, Saudi Arabia, China, Australia, and the rest of the world does. Anyone who's comparing their home country's system to another is making a huge mistake. When you're in a foreign country, be that as a tourist, student, worker, resident, etc, you are bound by the laws of that country, however right, wrong, magnificent, or draconian you think they may be.

All of the "yeah, but..." do not matter. Japan does it the way Japan does it. I suggest you learn to deal with that fact.

-4 ( +1 / -5 )

Should have tacked on another 10 years for injuring the kids.

7 ( +8 / -1 )

Death penalty for this brainless idiot

4 ( +8 / -4 )

His defense had said there was no causal link between his driving and the accident.

Judge: “You stand accused of shooting a man to death in broad daylight in front of a hundred eyewitnesses. How do you plead?”

Defendant: “Not guilty, your honor.”

Judge: “How can you possibly think you’re not guilt?”

Lawyer: “My client didn’t kill the victim, your honor, a bullet did. There is no causal link between the two.”

6 ( +11 / -5 )

Just 18 years ???? He deserved at least 40 years.

8 ( +9 / -1 )

Ishibashi used his car as a weapon to endanger lives.

He should also be banned from driving for the rest of his life,

6 ( +7 / -1 )

i see sometimes insane guys behind the wheel like this one quiet often as I am driving car everday to work and back home plus weekends and family holidays.

this so called "sentence" is not good enough,guy should be hanged as he is clear danger for society when changing his car to killing weapon.no mercy,society will not miss this piece of garbage at all.

feel very sorry abt kids stayed without parents for virtually no reason...

1 ( +3 / -2 )

government enforced revisions to Japan's traffic laws that toughened punishment

They can toughen the traffic laws all they want, but if the authorities continue to ignore them, then what is the point?

S

3 ( +4 / -1 )

It's a universal phenomenon - (certain) people becoming monsters when sitting behind the wheel of a motor vehicle.

3 ( +4 / -1 )

Ishibashi used his car as a weapon to endanger lives.

He should also be banned from driving for the rest of his life,

Spot on. What many people fail to observe is that this 'accident' is the cause of his aggressive driving for years, how many times has he done the same thing to other drivers? How many people survived this guy and avoided accidents out of pure luck/skills? Witnessing so many 'people' like him on a weekly basis got me thinking about buying a big pick-up truck with big offroad bumpers so I wouldnt have maniacs like this brake checking, tailgating and cutting me off which is a shame as I particularly enjoy driving compact sedans that allows me to navigate through narrow roads everywhere but ever since I moved to Tokyo/Osaka it seems like there is no other option but to be on the top of the food chain to scare these chimps away. Japan seems to be pretty much laid back outside of these areas though

-1 ( +0 / -1 )

Not long enough for this animal. 40 years minimum would have been a start.

2 ( +3 / -1 )

Takashi Takano, a lawyer of Ishibashi is known well as a " Innocent contractor" , one of the most famous criminal defense lawyers. He defended Aum Shinrikyo, Carlos Ghosn, This guy Ishibashi.

Just saying....

0 ( +1 / -1 )

Login to leave a comment

Facebook users

Use your Facebook account to login or register with JapanToday. By doing so, you will also receive an email inviting you to receive our news alerts.

Facebook Connect

Login with your JapanToday account

User registration

Articles, Offers & Useful Resources

A mix of what's trending on our other sites