The opening session was held Wednesday in the trial of a 16-year-old youth who was indicted for murdering his mother and grandmother in Yokohama last year.
The youth, who was 15 at the time of the crime, was sent back to the prosecutors by the family court after a psychiatric evaluation last year, Fuji TV reported.
The trial is being held under the lay judge system at the Yokohama District Court.
The court heard that the defendant showed up at a "koban" (police box) at around 1 p.m. on May 18, 2015, pulled a bloodied knife out of his bag and declared, "I stabbed both my mother and grandmother to death this morning."
Police went to the two-story home in Totsuka Ward and found the boy's 50-year-old mother and 81-year-old grandmother dead from multiple knife wounds.
When the indictment was read out in court, the youth admitted to the charge.
After his arrest, he was quoted by police as saying he got angry because his mother and grandmother had frequently scolded him for not doing his homework and about his attitude toward life.
The youth had been living with his mother, grandmother and 12-year-old sister, who had gone to school that day, while his father was living elsewhere for work.
The verdict is expected to be handed down on June 23.
© Japan Today
8 Comments
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sensei258
The verdict is a foregone conclusion, it's the sentence that matters here.
TheGodfather
It doesn't sound like a nice environment for the TWELVE-YEAR OLD sister. I wonder who she is living with now...
iamme
Hopefully with the father, wherever his work is
Myhumbletake
I hope he gets anger management help afterwards. He committed the irreparable and should face the outcomes like a man. Communication in the household is very important. Children should have a wide scale of expression such as family monthly discussions or assessments.
smithinjapan
Now is the time to put those "we will charge youths as adults in the worst cases" promises into practice. At 15 you know it is wrong to murder -- hell, you know that MUCH earlier -- and the guy deserves life. I don't care if he did it as a youth. I am willing to bet he knew very well what he was doing, and also knew that he probably wouldn't be charged as an adult if he killed them at the age he was.
Lock him up and keep him out of society. If he will murder people closest to him for questioning his character and work ethic, imagine what he would do to others once released.
DaDude
I am surprised there are people who don't take wagers on how light the sentences will be. I got my money on 2 years suspended.
Jason Santana
"he got angry because his mother and grandmother had frequently scolded him for not doing his homework and about his attitude toward life" really?? That's called life whether you experience now or when you start working you'll get scolded just the same. Murder should never be the solution to any problem.
Aly Rustom
Sadly, I'm afraid that you may very well be right.