Murdered his wife with a weapon while she was in the middle of divorce mediation… Indicted for murder, etc.
Defense attorney claims not guilty due to schizophrenia… Prosecution refutes “state of full responsibility”
A Japanese court found not guilty a 37-year-old American man who was indicted on charges of murdering his wife while they were in divorce mediation four years ago.
According to NHK and Yomiuri Shimbun, the Tokyo District Court found the American man not guilty at the sentencing hearing on the 20th, ruling that he was incapable of criminal responsibility due to mental and physical loss due to dyssynchrony (schizophrenia) at the time of the incident.
The man was charged with murder for cutting his 31-year-old wife to death with a weapon during divorce mediation at the Tokyo Family Court in 2019.
According to the Sankei Shimbun, the defendant’s (criminal) responsibility was an issue at trial.
The defense admitted that he murdered his wife, but claimed not guilty, saying that he was incapable of responsibility because he was mentally and physically impaired due to the effects of schizophrenic delusions and auditory hallucinations. The man remained silent during the hearing, saying, “I don’t want to say anything.”
On the other hand, the prosecution requested 22 years in prison for the man, saying, “He was in a state of complete inability to take responsibility.”
There are cases where the defendant exercises his right to remain silent during the investigation stage to intentionally disrupt the investigation, but at the trial stage, he has no choice but to exercise his right to defense, such as actively expressing his opinion to deny the facts of the charges, and if he remains silent, it will be detrimental to the verdict. This is a common belief.
Nevertheless, considering the defendant’s mental state, the court appears to have ruled that he was not actually responsible and declared him not guilty.
The judge said, “The defendant was deemed ‘not to be affected by mental illness’ in the pre-indictment mental evaluation, but after the indictment, the same doctor conducted the evaluation again and found that it was based on a strong delusion that his wife and child were being tortured to death. “We concluded that it amounted to murder,” he said, pointing out, “Of the two, the post-indictment emotions are credible as they match the facts recognized as other evidence.”
NHK also reported that the court found him not responsible and declared him not guilty, saying, “It was not discovered that he harbored anger or resentment so strong that he wanted to kill him, and he was in a state of mental and physical loss, as if he killed him due to the overwhelming influence of delusions or auditory hallucinations.”
The Tokyo District Prosecutors’ Office announced that it would take appropriate action after thoroughly reviewing the ruling regarding whether to appeal.
Source: Donga
Mark Jones is a world traveler and journalist for News Rebeat. With a curious mind and a love of adventure, Mark brings a unique perspective to the latest global events and provides in-depth and thought-provoking coverage of the world at large.