Overview
- The trial of the alleged ringleader in the 2024 Ebetsu group-assault death moved to mitigation hearings on July 30, 2026 at the Sapporo District Court where the court began testimony about the defendant’s background and family.
- A Law Reform Council subcommittee held its first meeting on July 30 to consider letting victims or their lawyers join pretrial case-sorting sessions and to expand the victim-participation制度 to more crimes.
- At a Ministry of Justice research hearing on July 30, wrongful-detention claimant Junji Shimada urged full audio and video recording of all interrogations and for bail to be treated as the norm rather than the exception.
- Former Oita police criminal chief Yoshifumi Kaai told the same research group that mandatory recording for every case would create heavy human and material burdens and could complicate investigations into organized crime.
- The push for change is driven by rising trial times and past wrongful-detention cases, and reform outcomes could speed trials and give bereaved families clearer roles while forcing trade-offs over defendants’ defense rights and police resources.