Tsu, Mie Pref., Oct. 20 (Jiji Press)–Tsu District Court on Tuesday sentenced a former truck driver to seven years in prison for an expressway crash that killed six people, including three children, in Mie Prefecture, western Japan, in March. The seven-year sentence for Mitsuyo Mizutani, 55, came as requested by the prosecution. Judge Hiroaki Deguchi said, “This is one of the most serious cases ever of negligent driving resulting in death.” According to the ruling, Mizutani was driving a truck at about 82 kilometers per hour, above the speed limit, on the Shin-Meishin Expressway in the Mie city of Kameyama, while looking at her smartphone before dawn on March 20. The truck plowed into a line of vehicles in a traffic jam, killing Keizo Takamine, then 56, from the city of Soka, Saitama Prefecture, north of Tokyo, as well as Koji Matsumoto, then 45, and his four family members from the city of Fukuroi, Shizuoka Prefecture, central Japan. The court acknowledged that Mizutani was watching the short-video sharing app TikTok on her smartphone for over 10 seconds to take a screenshot of a video at the time of the accident, neglecting to check for safety. “It was very careless driving that failed to take into account a driver’s responsibility or the risk of an accident,” the judge said. “The negligence is serious and deserves severe condemnation.” “The victims were not at fault in any way, and the consequences are extremely tragic and serious,” the judge continued. “It is impossible to understand the pain and regret of the victims, whose promising lives were cut short unjustly.” The judge concluded that, even considering Mizutani’s remorse and other circumstances, giving her the maximum statutory penalty was appropriate. On Oct. 7, a transport company in the western city of Hiroshima and its president were referred to prosecutors on suspicion of requiring five truck drivers, including Mizutani, to work illegal overtime. END [Copyright The Jiji Press, Ltd.]
