Parents of hit-and-run victim present petition demanding stiffer penalty for defendant

It would be interesting to know what the legal requirements are for charging someone with vehicular manslaughter and why the prosecutors office decided not to charge the suspect with this charge in the first place. I am presuming that it wasn't done because there was not enough evidence to do so...? Nevertheless, it is a completely tragic story, there is never an excuse for driving drunk and here a young man has lost his life because of an idiot who had no respect for the lives of others. If he is found guilty this guy deserves to have the maximum sentence.

I have heard of several cases where people/children are killed and these drivers are NOT even charged and just let go with a slap on the wrist. Reminds me the case of a young British/Japanese student that was ran over by a truck and this animal at the wheel not knowing what to do sped up breaking the neck of the youngster. This guy was never given prison time, not a year, not 2 years, nothing. I wonder why the parents didn't do the same thing? Stand up and demand the same thing as the parents of the above article. But knowing how backwards is the Japanese judicial system I seriously doubt anything will change, IMHO.

I vaguely remember this case. I think the 19 year old was riding a motorcycle or scooter?

Hit and run, driving without a license and driving after drinking are all no-nos. But its going to be interesting to hear from all the people who think you can solve a case by looking at just one side of the story. I also heard the driver was caught going the wrong way down a one way street. Yeah, he sounds pretty reckless. But you still can't solve a case by looking at just one side of the picture.

So I ask: what was the 19 year old doing? I have to ask, because the article does not bother to tell us. No way I can jump on the bandwagon like this.

At 47 years old the defendant should know better. Once many, many, years ago I was stopped and taken into custody here in Japan for driving without a valid license.

My friend had been drinking and was in no condition to drive, I only had my stateside license, which of course is not valid here, but I took the responsibility of watching out for my friend and make the conscious decision to drive him home. (I had not been drinking at all that night) The police had a check point set up on the road that I took and I was stopped and charged with driving without a license. I ended up paying a fine of something like 100,000 yen, my friend paid half too.

The JP's take driving without a license very seriously and threatened me with being deported if I ever did it again.

My point is that this guy wasn't a wet behind the ears teenager, he is middle aged and should have known better and flaunted the law. In my opinion he deserves the stiffer sentence.

Oh and btw, I would do the same thing again, given the situation, but at least now I have the license and it wouldn't be a problem!

Wondering how many times there have been 30,000 signature petitions for harsher sentences when a Japanese kills a foreigner. I'm guessing it has never happened in the history of Japan.

Just saying.

Japan_cynic - I'm not a fan of the legal system over here, but in this case I don't think nationality plays a part. Drunk and without a license - resulting in death. Maybe 20 years is a little stiff, but it should be treated the same as any other manslaughter case as it was simply irresponsible.

I suppose you're living up to your name, but in this case I don't think nationality is a major factor.

Maybe 20 years is a little stiff, but it should be treated the same as any other manslaughter case as it was simply irresponsible.

Personally I believe that anyone who is found guilty of causing a death due to drunk driving should be given life in prison. I see it as being the same as pre-meditated murder, no one forced him to drink, no one forced him to drive, it was a conscious decision, knowing fully well that he had no license, and that driving after drinking is against the law.

If that isnt premeditated then what is?

but in this case I don't think nationality is a major factor

I beg to differ - but thats just me.

I cant think of any reason why the driver should not be given a life sentence, no licence,alchohol consumed, run over a young guy and leave him to die. It is unlikely that here in Europe that the perpertrator would be given a life sentence for the same crime, mores the pity

Seven years? That is criminal. Just drinking and driving alone should be more than that. Sorry but deport him. No license, drunk and driving dangerously and then leaving the scene of a crime after he hit someone and killed him? He doesn't deserve to live here. I wonder how the Brazilian community here feels? They have it hard enough as it is, they don't need this guy around making it harder for them.

According to prosecutors, the suspect's alcohol concentration level was very low when arrested, although he admits drinking six Tequilas and three glasses of beer. The suspect also stepped on the brakes. Even if charged with vehicular homicide, he will get a sentence of more than one year to a maximum of twenty years in prison.

I wonder if the perpetrator will feign an illness, be sent to hospital, then be let out for a smoke ? Or does this only work for yakuza members?

I agree with Yubaru and Christina.

According to prosecutors, the suspect's alcohol concentration level was very low when arrested

Of course it was - he fled the scene and had plenty of time to let the alcohol run out of his system. But 6 Tequilas and 3 glasses of beer - no-one should be behind a wheel after that and he KNEW it well.

I wonder why the parents didn't do the same thing? Stand up and demand the same thing as the parents of the above article

Sorry Francesca - maybe it is just the way this is worded but it kind of comes across as "what is wrong with those parents? Didnt they care enough??" I am sure that is not what you meant, but to answer your question I have been in contact with the father of the boy who was killed and I can absolutely assure you they do. They are also still in a state of shock after all this time, and are very realistic about what Japan is like. But dont think for a second they are not equally as angry if not more so - his killer (sorry but that is what he was) got off scot free

I believe that driving after drinking is at the very least negligent homicide (is there such a thing?) and should be punished severely. Note that this is the least. Anyone who drinks and drives is either in deep denial about what happens, doesn't care or is somewhat of a sociopath. The parents are right to be very angry. The only thing I'm surprised about is why this isn't brought up in other similar hit and run cases. At least I haven't heard of any on this site.

@Yubaru: While I applaud your morality, how about not taking the car if you're planning on drinking. I'm sure a taxi ride is far cheaper than a potential 100,000 man fine and possible deportation. Please don't try and tell me that there is a lack of taxi service here in Japan.

@ Japan Cynic Wondering how many times there have been 30,000 signature petitions for harsher sentences when a Japanese kills a foreigner. I'm guessing it has never happened in the history of Japan.

Would you get 30,000 signatures for a Japanese n America or wherever you are from? Don't make it racial when it isn't.

This is realism (the country you are in) and simple mathematics. Respect the laws of the country you live in. You are a guest and a foreigner.

A similar case in Australia last week ended in a 15 year jail term for the perp. I can understand the petition to have this guy heavily sentenced. However, I can't understand why it doesn't happen for every hit and run resulting in death, usually one a week. A much as I don't like to say it, I think there is quite a bit of racial motivation in this petition as well.

That's the problem with people who drink and drive, they are playing Russian roulette not only with their own lives but also anybody else in close proximity. I agree a harsher sentence is required...as long as a precedent is set on future cases. I cannot imagine what extenuating circumstances warrant justifying driving while over the limit. I also feel the book should be thrown at folk driving while using phones and texting....or watching TV.

Is there a racial motivation there? I don't know. The most important thing is that a young lad lost his life.

japan_cynic: "Wondering how many times there have been 30,000 signature petitions for harsher sentences when a Japanese kills a foreigner. I'm guessing it has never happened in the history of Japan."

The same thing crossed my mind. In a way the people who say it's not based on ethnicity are correct, but then again, I've never once heard of parents and community petitioning for a harsher sentence in similar cases when it's a Japanese nation (be the victim Japanese or otherwise). On the contrary, you often hear of people on this site calling for stiffer sentences in general despite the suspect being a minor, and many quickly come to that person's defense.

The kid (for he is a minor) may or may not deserve more than the max seven years he can get for this, and I think he should be charged as an adult for sure, but until the laws are changed he cannot rightly be given more while everyone else in this nation gets less for the same thing or worse crimes. What the people should be doing, and what I would gladly sign, is a petition to have the laws changed outright and penalties for such crimes made stricter. For this one case, though, you cannot bend the law while turning a blind eye when it's not your kid.

jonobugs....first thank you. Second I agree 100% and this guy is doubly guilty as I see it because he had access to a car with no license either.

My situation at the time demanded that someone drive. There was no intent to drink at the place we were at but the circumstances changed and it happened. Plus the car would have been towed and the costs involved with that are staggering as well. What happened happened and a lesson was learned.

I think 7 years is already quite a lot. After all, there was no intention. Carelessness, yes. Recklessness, yes. But bad intentions? No. Even though the consequences are extremely tragic - put him to jail for seven years, have him pay high compensation money and revoke his driver's license forever. But someone who killed by accident is not a murderer. He was probably quite drunk, but if it is true that he tried to break, than it is obvious that there was no intention to harm the kid.

Since criminals who intently do harm get off so easily in Japan, it is extremely hard to understand, if people who are involved in accidents - even though they bear the blame - get punished for more than a few years. He should be sentenced for a sufficiently long term, but he should be also given a chance to reintegrate into society (whether in Japan or in Brazil is another issue). And driving without a license doesn't make the accident worse. It should be treated as a separate case. I feel sorry for all sides in such an accident.

"revoke his driver's license forever"

Johannes, the only problem with this idea is that he didn't have a driving license in the first place. Indeed, there is no intention in killing somebody when you drive drunk and without a license, but I doubt that the family of the 19 year old would be very impressed by this argument. And I would agree to you to same extent, if it wouldn't be for the hit-and-run part. In my opinion, this completely nullifies the lack of intention argument. he let the young guy die there on the street, that's murder in my opinion

revoke his driver's license forever. But someone who killed by accident is not a murderer.

Kind of hard to revoke something he didnt have in the first place huh?

Drunk driving is not an accident, drunk driving is done by a person who makes a conscious decision to break the law and should be prosecuted as such.

There are no excuses for anyone to drink and drive.

Yubaru - Agreed! It's called vehicular manslaughter! Do the crime, do the time!

ok, i drink and drive all the time. been doing it since 16. for those of u who have never done it will never understand how safe it is. its much safer than texting on your phone or looking for a cd. the reason why drinkn and drivn gets such a bad rep, is bevause of those binge drinking f n drunk drivers who can bareky stand up decide to drive. and no thanks to the mothers against drunk drivrs club in the west. i bet deaths by drunk drivers account for 1/8 of deaths by all of u morons texting and talking on your phones, eating a hamburger, drinking that morning coffee, unwrappng that candy bar. give me a break. that brazilian was just unlucky. even if he were sober, he would have still hit that kid, and most likely it was the kids fault not looking before crossing the road. be responsible, dont drink and driv if ur SMASHED. u have my blessing otherwise. say no to texting and driving. now thats a killer!!

naruhodo.... It isn't your life that counts it's the innocent victims that get killed because of irresponsible people like you.

@naruhodo...I agree about the texting and what not, but that's a different topic.

@naruhodo - I see the point you are trying to make although I dont agree with it at all. Some people may be able to drive after one beer. Someone else may not. But who gets to judge whether they are capable of driving or not? Oh, thats right, you decide yourself. Except after a few beers your judgement is hardly going to be razor sharp now, is it?

Congratulations on never having had an accident so far. You have been lucky. No, scratch that. Everyone else around you has.

@smithinjapan

The kid (for he is a minor) may or may not deserve more than the max seven years he can get for this

The kid was the victim. The perp was 47, drunk and didn't have a license.

Reseach was done in Australia recently regarding senctencing, with the public generally feeling that sentences were too light, while people who had served on juries felt that sentences were apt.

It is very easy to judge based on the evidence presented by Japan Today, or newspaper articles; much harder once you are sitting in the courtroom. If the Japanese prosecution doesn't wish to elevate this crime to Vehicular Homicide, there is a reason for them doing so - Japan doesn't have a 99% conviction rate for nothing - they make charges they think will stick.

There's a program where we live that, during New Year's Eve, all the taxi associations agree the rides from bars to homes are free. Everyone gets home safe, and the taxi associations write off the fares for year-end tax deductions. Everybody benefits; there's no reason not to call; the barkeeps would even make the call for you. They're now thinking of expanding this to more holidays, but the taxi drivers have to earn a living too............

(And both drink-n-drive and txt-n-drive are both illegal too.)

Another stupid person darkening the Brazilian community

Yeah, I must admit, the first thing that sprang to my mind was how do the Brazilian community, especially in that area, feel about this. I know it shouldnt be made out to be a racial thing, but I know that if a Brit did something bad in my area I would almost feel personally responsible and the need to apologise to the Japanese community I live in, even though it wouldnt be my fault. Like when Lindsay Hawker was killed by a Japanese, and so many lovely Japanese people apologised to me personally, and some were even in tears. Like it or not if you have a soul you DO feel a responisibility when one of your own does something wrong.

There's a program where we live that, during New Year's Eve, all the taxi associations agree the rides from bars to homes are free. Everyone gets home safe, and the taxi associations write off the fares for year-end tax deductions. Everybody benefits; there's no reason not to call; the barkeeps would even make the call for you. They're now thinking of expanding this to more holidays, but the taxi drivers have to earn a living too............

Now if this was everyday it would be a winner!

andrewx51: "The kid was the victim. The perp was 47, drunk and didn't have a license."

Oops! Obviously read that one a little too quickly. Thanks for pointing out the obvious error in my comment.

That rules out being charged as a minor, of course, but the rest of my comment holds true -- if others are charged in accordance with and no more than the laws demand, so should he be until the laws change. I think they SHOULD be changed with the option, at the very least, of a lengthier sentence should the jury and/or judge warrant it. THAT is what the people should be petitioning for.

I really don't understand why he wasn't charged with vehicular manslaughter in the first place?! He was drunk and the boy he hit died. What other evidence do they need?

ok, i drink and drive all the time. been doing it since 16. for those of u who have never done it will never understand how safe it is. its much safer than texting on your phone or looking for a cd.

Are you serious?! Drinking and driving is dangerous. Period. Even one or two drinks will impair your judgement and slow your reaction time. There's no need to compare it to texting on your phone while driving. I hope the cops catch you, nail you and revoke your license before you hurt someone.

Its simply amazing how great an effect the anti-drunk driving campaigns have had. Perhaps only trained seals have anything on some of you!

Same as murder? Life sentence? Trust me, those are not opinions. That is MADD talking through you like a ventriloquist. Well the only weapon I have is logic.

There are degrees of drunkenness just as there are degrees of sleepiness, speed, and general carelessness. But if you want to follow this crazy train to its logical conclusion, then there ARE no accidents, and all surviving drivers should just be immediately executed for murder. Slipped on snow? No excuse! You KNEW there was snow on the roads and you chose to drive anyway. One kph over the speed limit? You must have wanted to kill someone! Didn't see it coming for a blind spot? Right! You just didn't crane your neck because you wanted someone to die! It was your elderly reflexes? You should have known!

Come on. You really think stuff like that is totally different from some alcohol? As it stands, alcohol is currently being blamed for something like 5 percent of all accidents. Well how come for every dui accident we hear about we don't hear about 20 other accidents with other causes? Because it does not set off the panic button that has been implanted in your head is why.

Seriously, if the 19 year old was on a black scooter with no lights on at night and ran a red light right in front of the Brazilian, I believe most of you would STILL blame the Brazilian. Well, so would the Japanese cops!

Well folks, the punishments are already extremely stiff for dui, and never mind all the stuff that is just as dangerous but gets a "meh". Do you actually think that making the punishments even stiffer are going to help? There was a guy named Draco, and they killed him for a reason.

Come on. You really think stuff like that is totally different from some alcohol?

Yes

You are a guest and a foreigner. Wrong. Some of us are NOT guests here and are here forever. That line of thinking needs to be done away with.

Seriously, if the 19 year old was on a black scooter with no lights on at night and ran a red light right in front of the Brazilian, I believe most of you would STILL blame the Brazilian. I would blame the dumb 19 year but would hope that the drunk Brazilian would be arrested for driving without a license - which means without insurance, reckless driving AND drunk driving. Each one of those account in my country would get you time. Combine and killing someone? Much more than seven years.

Is this racially motivated? Does it matter? Seven years is faaar too light for such an incident. Would the Japanese support something like this if it was a foreigner killed? Perhaps. I like to think they would.

Every single idiot caught drink driving should do time. Every single one of them.

I would blame the dumb 19 year but would hope that the drunk Brazilian would be arrested for driving without a license - which means without insurance, reckless driving AND drunk driving.

Smart answer. Now ask yourself why I am the only one asking about what the 19 year old was doing.

Combine and killing someone? Much more than seven years.

I would agree completely if I could be sure the 19 year old was blameless. Well, I can't.

KingBasil, regardless of the actions of the teenager, the driver of the car was unlicensed and drunk, which means he should not have been on the road at all!

Where was I arguing that he should have been on the road Dissillusioned? My problem was with the idea of a murder charge and a life sentence.

People who kill others on snowy, icy days also should not have been on the road. But no one screams for murder charges and life in prison. Yet, driving on icy roads sober is worse, because you cannot even say your judgement was impaired!

I don't have any stats on ice being named as the cause of accidents, but around 5 percent for drunk driving is a recent fact. Surely there must be something else to go all "hang 'em high" about?

An automobile has the potential to be a deadly weapon. A moment's indiscretion or inattentiveness while driving, and people around the driver can die. In this an automobile is no different from a gun or hunting knife. If you can't handle this weapon responsibly, you shouldn't have the privilege to use it, and if you harm others using your weapon, you must bear responsibility for what you've done.

Forget the race of the perpetrator. The drunk driver is responsible for not being able to control his vehicle responsibly. And this is manslaughter whether he used a vehicle or anything else that can kill.

YubaruFEB. 06, 2012 - 09:28AM JST Personally I believe that anyone who is found guilty of causing a death due to drunk driving should be given life in prison. I see it as being the same as pre-meditated murder, no one forced him to drink, no one forced him to drive, it was a conscious decision, knowing fully well that he had no license, and that driving after drinking is against the law.

If that isnt premeditated then what is?

I read your posts Yubaru, i agree with you 100%. Can't understand how some folks will disagree with what you're saying, This guy needs to be throw away. Taking a life in such a reckless fashion is murder in my books. No license, drunk, takes off. Come on now folks!

yongyang and dolphinegirl, and i really hope they catch u guys the next time you text, use the phone, eat or drink while operating a vehicle for i gurantee those habbits kill more people, are more dangerous and the odds are much much higher than people who drink and are over the limit （to explain the odds, most drinking and driving happwns at night, late at night, no traffic or pedestrians/kids, as opposed to the silent killer habbits mentioned above). they just dont make good news headline. and because of that, u guys are lucky, there arent harsh penalties for the silent but deadlier killers.

Now ask yourself why I am the only one asking about what the 19 year old was doing.

Where have I mentioned anything about charging the guy with murder? Indeed, it is fair to wonder what the 19 year old was doing. I've not heard if we was wearing all black, driving with his light off... However, even if he were, that doesn't excuse the driver of the care from a) driving without a license b) driving without insurance c) drinking recklessly d) driving drunk e) leaving the scene of an accident. All in all, chuck him out of Japan. He was a selfish jerk who drove drunk and I have zero sympathy for anyone who is dumb and selfish enough to play Russian roulette. Sadly, the 19 year old lost his life because of these poor decisions.

@NowIsee: I do none of those hunny. I am not a selfish idiot who puts others at risk. Stop transferring your guilt onto others who don't even do as you do. Drive like a selfish, reckless...

Well said Tmarie and smithinjapan! I totally agree that seven years as sentence for someone (wherever he is from) who killed another (wherever he was from) driving a car without a license and under influence of alcohol is an unacceptable punishment however i wonder why so many signatures haven't ever been collected for any other light and unfair punishments the Japanese legal system has always given to so many other brutal murder cases. If this wasn't a nationality thing wouldn't the parents collect signatures to change the whole Japanese system requesting heavier punishments for ALL murder cases given light sentences instead of thinking in only their case?!?! For those who think I'm ashamed because of that ass...., you're thinking wrong, a bad apple is just a bad apple, people who generalize all the other apples that look alike are the ones who should be ashamed of themselves for discrimination.

Don't know the details, so I can't make a judgement on whether the charge makes sense or not. Did the 19-year-old shoot out in front of the driver unexpectedly? Don't know.

It's strange that the only way Japan Today thought to identify the suspect is as a "Brazilian National", like that makes any difference to the story.

why are they telling us it was a brazilian national behind the wheel? They don't want to make it about nationalities, but they just did...

The same thing crossed my mind. In a way the people who say it's not based on ethnicity are correct, but then again, I've never once heard of parents and community petitioning for a harsher sentence in similar cases when it's a Japanese nation (be the victim Japanese or otherwise). On the contrary, you often hear of people on this site calling for stiffer sentences in general despite the suspect being a minor, and many quickly come to that person's defense.

False. Approximately 83,000 signature was collected in just in June of 2010 with the said petition submitted to the Ministry of Justice. This is the 6th time that the "飲酒・ひき逃げ事犯に厳罰を求める遺族・関係者全国連絡協議会" petitioned with approximately 440 thousand signature collected.

As usual, the article is misleading for the parents are not seeking harsher sentence under r自動車運転過失致死 . They are seeking the charges of 危険運転致死罪 (vehicular manslaughter) which carries a much harsher sentence.

My problem was with the idea of a murder charge and a life sentence.

Zero tolerance, it's that plain and simple. If there is a will there is a way. People who advocate allowing people to drink and drive to any degree are accidents and deaths waiting to happen.

The newspapers always comment on nationality unless the person is Japanese. Sadly, the newspapers and new "back home" often do this as well - though usually they focus on race.

We don't know if Nationality is a factor behind the 29,000 signatures calling for a harsher penalty because... and I could be wrong, there is no National data base in Japan that one may access regarding drunk driving accidents and various statistics thereof. Or is there such a data base? If we knew how many people died in drunk driving related incidents yearly we might be able to draw some conclusion.

Actually... after looking up "drink driving" in Japan and reading a few articles in English... this guy is getting off too easy and I now agree with the parents and their petition. To only be charged with "reckless driving" is letting this guy off way to easy.

Where have I mentioned anything about charging the guy with murder?

Where did I say you did Tmarie?

that doesn't excuse the driver of the care from a) driving without a license b) driving without insurance c) drinking recklessly d) driving drunk e) leaving the scene of an accident.

If C includes even a small amount of alcohol in the blood, there are excuses for all the above. However, in this case I don't think he has an excuse for any of those, so I don't care if the book is thrown at him for all the above.

But truly, none of those have any direct bearing on who caused the accident. They amount to playing the odds, but odds are not facts.

Indeed, it is fair to wonder what the 19 year old was doing.

I am glad to see someone say that. Its essential to the equation.

Sorry but ONE drink is one drink too many when it comes to driving. Throw the book at him.

I say that: 1) Zero tolerance towards DUI is an honorable goal easily attained, 2) the perp should be taken off the streets for a lot longer than seven years, and 3) people signed their names for tougher sentence because the perp was a foreigner.

This Brazilian sounds like one real stupid idiot! I am sure many good, honest Brazilans are very angry at this guy, giving many good hard working Brazilians in Japan a bad reputation. I feel very sorry for the dead young Japanese young man, and for this family and friends too. RIP

Japanese must learn to be strict with themselves too, now it is a Brazilian in the news, but the vast majority of these horrible hit and runs are by Japanese against other Japanese, and the news here must focus on too many drunk drivers, or just plain wreckless drivers that often cause so much harm and pain and deaths to innocent people.

Poor family, hard to lose a child that young. Japanese also drive drunk, but the noise is louder in the room if a foreigner does it, regardless of the country. As foreigners lets remind our friends about drunk driving and the consequences. Its sad but true, foreigners have a bad image in Japan (the good foreigner sometimes pay the price for stupid decisions of others), I say lets talk to our friends , inform them...make them reflect a little.. Many of you know in Japan there are taxi services that can take you home if your are drunk. Just pay a little , for a taxi ...because a life is priceless.