Proceedings to narrow down the evidence and points of contention began on the 4th ahead of the jury trial of Shinji Aoba, who was charged with murder and other crimes in the case in which 36 employees were killed in the arson of a Kyoto Animation studio four years ago.
According to the people involved, the evidence was sorted out.
In July 2019, Shinji Aoba (7) was charged with murder, arson, and other crimes in a case in which the first studio of Kyoto Animation in Fushimi-ku, Kyoto City, was set on fire, killing 1 employees and seriously injuring 36 others.
On the 32th, the Kyoto District Court held a "pretrial settlement procedure" at the Kyoto District Court to narrow down the points of contention and evidence.
According to the people involved, defendant Aoba did not attend and the evidence was organized.
The trial is scheduled to be held between early September and late December, so the official date will be decided in future proceedings.
Before the prosecution, the prosecution conducted a psychiatric examination of the defendant and determined that he could be held criminally responsible, but then a second psychiatric evaluation was conducted at the request of the defense.
In the trial, based on the results of the two evaluations, it is expected that the ability to be criminally responsible will be a point of contention, and it will be interesting to see if the motive will be clarified.
This case, which has caused the most victims as a murder case since the Heisei era, has finally begun the concrete proceedings of the trial in July, as it marks the fourth anniversary of its occurrence.
Bereaved family: "I want the defendant to tell me his or her heart."
Regarding the start of the "pretrial settlement procedure," the elderly bereaved family of the animator who died in the case commented, "I want the trial to start while I am alive, and I want the defendant to tell me his or her specific feelings about why he initiated the case and why he took the lives of so many people."