Tokaido Shinkansen in-car killing case Today's ruling focus is "the weight of punishment"

Tokaido Shinkansen in-car killing case Today's decision is "Weight of punishment" December 18, 4:37

In June of last year, the 23-year-old defendant charged with murder for murdering three passenger men and women in a car on the Tokaido Shinkansen running in Kanagawa Prefecture, Judgment will be given.

Prosecutors are seeking indefinite imprisonment, and the focus is on how judges judge the weight of the sentence.

Defendant Ichiro Kojima (23), whose address is undefined and unemployed, cut off three passengers, male and female, on the Tokaido Shinkansen train that was running in Kanagawa Prefecture in June last year. Umeda, an office worker in Amagasaki City, Hyogo Prefecture He has been accused of murder and attempted murder for killing Kotaro (38 at the time) and injuring two women.

In the trial, the defendant admitted what was prosecuted and said, “I wanted to go to jail and made a plan. I was thinking about how many people would be killed so that they would not be killed.”

The prosecution pointed out that “It was a brutal and serious indiscriminate killing incident, and there was no reflection or misunderstanding. Criminals in a full-sized bullet train can be said to be violent terrorism.” I have been sentenced to permanent imprisonment.

In response, the defendant's attorney argued, "It is not appropriate to impose an excessively heavy sentence, as it can be expected to reflect while serving for a long time."

The ruling will be handed down at the Odawara branch of the Yokohama District Court from 2:30 pm on the 18th, focusing on how judges judge the weight of the sentence.

Focus on sentence weight

In this case, there was no dispute between the prosecution and the defendant's lawyer regarding the fact that the defendant prepared systematically such as preparing weapons and killed three men and women in the bullet train.

For this reason, the prosecution's weight became a focus, and the prosecution said on 9th of this month, “In a brutal and serious indiscriminate murder case, there is no room for reluctance in the trial, and there is room for motivation to live in prison for life. No. The crime in a full-sized Shinkansen train can be called violent terrorism. "

On the other hand, in addition to the fact that the defendant has problems to be addressed, such as the absence of a criminal record and a young age, and the fact that there is no word of reflection, “ It is thought that it is acting dare. "

On top of that, he was sentenced to life imprisonment, saying that the death penalty is unavoidable.

The defendant's lawyer, on the other hand, argued, "It is not appropriate to impose an excessively heavy sentence, because we can expect to reflect on it for a long time."

Testimony in defendant Kojima's trial

Defendant Kojima concretely testified the circumstances leading up to the incident, the circumstances at the time, and the current thoughts in response to the defendant's questions.

[Motivation]
For motivation,
“I wanted to go to prison since I was a junior high school student” (3rd defense side), “I want to go into imprisonment for a lifetime” (5th defense side),
In addition, he said, “I killed a person who has nothing to do with my desires. Although there is normal ethics, priority was given to desires” (4th prosecution).

[Background / Planning]
In addition, about the circumstances that led to the incident, “When I was homeless in Nagano Prefecture around March last year, I made a plan to cause an indiscriminate murder on the Shinkansen” (3rd defense side), “ "Whether it is a woman, an old man, or a child, I thought I would do it if I was a human being." And “I was investigating past incidents to see how much I would go to death” (4 days prosecution), “I thought I would try to stay with 2 people because I killed 3 people,” (4 days prosecution) Said.

【Situation】
As for the situation of the incident, “I didn't hesitate at all. When I swung down, I hit my head” (4 days prosecution). "Wait, listen to the story." This is the last word.I asked you to lift up your head with no questions and answers.I seemed to suffer. "(4 days prosecution) It was.

[Reflection / Apology]
Regarding his feelings, he mentioned that the lawyer told me that there was a possibility of the death penalty, and stated that “My life is frustrating” (5 days prosecution), while “I do not apologize because I want to be imprisoned indefinitely. "(5th Public Prosecutor)" or "I want to appeal that I have not reflected at all" (5th Lawyer).

[Re-offending]
When asked about indefinite imprisonment, he said, “I will try not to be released on parole, but if I do so, I am going to have some murder again” (5th prosecution).