A couple who were arrested on suspicion of violating the Stimulants Control Law and were not prosecuted were accused of infringing on their privacy by posting their home address and lot number in an article in the Shizuoka Shimbun that reported their arrest. The judgment of the second trial, which dismissed the appeal and determined that there was no infringement of privacy, was finalized.
A Brazilian couple living in Shizuoka Prefecture was arrested in 2018 on suspicion of violating the Stimulant Drug Control Act, and was subsequently dismissed. sued the company.
The Shizuoka District Court in the first instance acknowledged that it was an infringement of privacy, saying, "It is hard to say that it is necessary to post the lot number," and ordered compensation of more than 600,000 yen in total.
On the other hand, the Tokyo High Court of the second instance pointed out, ``Identifying the suspect is an important matter related to the public interest, and there is a great need for it to be reported, and freedom of expression is guaranteed.'' At the time the article was published, there was no social awareness that the public disclosure of the lot number should not be allowed uniformly when reporting on the arrest of a suspect, and it does not constitute an infringement of privacy." I withdrew.
The couple had filed an appeal, but Masaaki Oka, the presiding judge of the First Petty Court of the Supreme Court, made a decision to dismiss it by the 26th, and the second trial judgment was finalized, stating that it did not violate privacy.