Overview

• The Supreme Court signaled a review of how bail is handled following the Ōkawara Chemical wrongful‑conviction case, in which a detained ex‑adviser with cancer was denied release and later died.
• Saga’s prefectural assembly compiled a draft resolution urging police to permit an independent, expert third‑party investigation into DNA testing misconduct by a former forensic lab employee.
• MLIT shut its ‘Grasp’ web magazine after staff found on October 2 that a system fault was redirecting users to unrelated sites, and the ministry is investigating the cause.
• Former Prime Minister Fumio Kishida and LDP senior adviser Taro Aso met on October 2 to discuss how to respond if the party leadership contest goes to a runoff on October 4.
• Opposition parties are weighing how far to cooperate with the ruling camp on policy as some LDP leadership candidates express openness to expanding coalition arrangements.