Ex-Death Row Inmate’s Sister Seeks Evidence Disclosure System Review

Tokyo, June 9 (Jiji Press)–The older sister of former Japanese death row inmate Iwao Hakamata on Tuesday called for prosecutors to fully disclose evidence in relation to a review of the country’s retrial system. “I want (prosecutors) to present all the good and bad evidence,” Hideko Hakamata, the sister, told a meeting of the House of Representatives Judicial Affairs Committee. She was summoned to the meeting to discuss a Criminal Procedure Code revision bill. The government bill plans to limit the scope of evidence disclosure and not to provide the defense with a list of evidence. “Momentum built with the disclosure of evidence and the result (of his acquittal) was achieved,” she said of the retrial procedures for Iwao, who was acquitted in a retrial over the 1966 murder of four members of a family in Shizuoka Prefecture, central Japan. She also criticized the prosecution’s appeal against a court decision to start the retrial, saying, “Because of this, it took 58 years” from the occurrence of the incident to the acquittal, and called for a complete ban on such appeals. Lawyer Hiroaki Murayama, a former judge at Shizuoka District Court, who decided to reopen the case for Iwao, said, “Disclosing evidence is the lifeline for a retrial.” He expressed concern about the government’s bill, saying, “It’s unlikely for prosecutors to present evidence for acquittal.” He also warned that the government’s proposal to ban the use of evidence for purposes other than retrial proceedings could hinder press freedom and the public’s right to know. Toru Yoshizawa, another lawyer, raised concerns among crime victims about potential abuse of retrial requests and invasion of privacy, urging consideration of these issues. The bill stipulates that a court must order the prosecution to submit evidence “when it deems it appropriate” based on relevance and necessity. It prohibits providing disclosed evidence to third parties for purposes other than retrial proceedings. In contrast, the opposition Centrist Reform Alliance and others advocate for the disclosure of a list of evidence by the prosecution. END [Copyright The Jiji Press, Ltd.]