How is it possible that Japan has a 99% conviction rate?
In: 3178
[https://thediplomat.com/2020/03/carlos-ghosn-and-japans-99-conviction-rate/](https://thediplomat.com/2020/03/carlos-ghosn-and-japans-99-conviction-rate/)
This article explains it pretty well, and tells you that if the US measured conviction rates in the same way Japan does we would also have a 99% conviction rate.
Almost every country with high conviction rates are over inflated. These stats are very important to prosecutors. They only go only cases that they are almost guaranteed to win. And most of the time, its through a guilty plea because the defendant knows they lose as-well.
This causes huge problems, because the conviction rates are flooded with insignificant crimes such as simple possession of drugs.
While important and more difficult crimes such as sexual assault get ignored 95% of the time.
Law enforcement don’t give a flying fuck about doing what is socially right. They only care about their stats to look good to their superiors.
As others have said:
*Focusing on cases that are likely to lead to convictions
*Institutional factors that discourage judges from rendering not-guilty verdicts and encourage prosecutors to relentlessly pursue plea deals
*In many cases, harsh pre-trial treatment (e.g., being stuck in jail) compared to lenient punishment for a confession (e.g., pay a $500 fine and the conviction will be kept quiet)
There’s a great Japanese movie from 2007 called “I Just Didn’t Do It” that focuses on the struggle of a man who is falsely accused of groping someone on the subway. The fact that he “just didn’t do it” simply can’t compete with everything being discussed in this thread. Well worth a watch!
I had a mate who got locked up in Japan, he freely admitted he was in the wrong (he slapped a random woman’s ass in the street whilst slightly worse for wear – obviously not an excuse) cops hauled him over and stuck him in pre trial detention for four weeks and he pled guilty as soon as he could. He got a fine though oddly enough wasn’t deported even though he was only on a working visa as an English teacher).
The Japanese legal system really doesn’t fuck around if it’s decided you’ve done something
Majority US prosecutors have conviction rates in the 90% range as well
As a prosecutor, it’s evidently not about wether or not the person did the crime, it’s about conviction rating. Because if your not getting convictions, that implys your a shitty attorney
The county I was on probation at had a 96% probation failure, because guess what, if you arnt violating people, apparently that means your not doing your job
I’ve been through the legal system tons of time, I wouldn’t believe this to be factual, but it was my paid attorney who told me this
I’ve been arrested for plenty of crimes, some of which I did and some that I didn’t do. Few of them I didn’t do everything they charged me with, but they offered me a very easy going plea deal
So if you in a position where you can take it to trial and risk 8 years in prison if you lose, or just sign a plea for 3 months jail time. What would you pick?
Then I had another case where I 100% did exactly what I was accused of, but my lawyer was able to take a massive shit all over their evidence to where the prosecution had no case whatsoever. Yet still they try to offer a plea deal so it keeps their conviction rating high
I had to turn down 4 plea deals and only 2 days before trail did the prosecution give up and drop my case, the last plea deal they offered was hysterical, was “no jail no probation, plea guilty to reduced charge, and pay a 1$ fine”, and my lawyer basically suggested I tell them to fuck off and not sign it lol
Oh yeah not to mention going to trail for a felony case? Right around 5000$, ontop of the 1000$ retainer fee and 200$ per hour for all work done. So it’s “do 3 months in jail and plea guilty, or pay 7K fighting it, and risk 8years in prison”
Sure public defenders are free if your broke, BUT its not a stretch to say with a public defender your case is “you vs prosecutors, jury, and your own lawyer” because the public defenders have had always do bottom barrel minimum
This is in USA, but thought I’d chime in with the absolute disgusting situation of the US legal system as well, and I would be surprised if the situation in Japan wasn’t far off of US system
Also public defender vs paid lawyer. My public defender just chilled and let me bury myself in a court room flapping my mouth (not rudely, but stupidly, specific ways to ask for things in a court room)
And with a paid lawyer, the judge asked me specifically a question, and my lawyer told me to shut the fuck up and answered the question for me lol
One of the short answers is it’s thought they might be convicting a lot of innocent people.
In addition to all the good answers here, it’s worth mentioning that the US has a federal conviction rate of 91.4%
[Source ](https://www.pewresearch.org/short-reads/2023/06/14/fewer-than-1-of-defendants-in-federal-criminal-cases-were-acquitted-in-2022/)
Deep corruption and the assumption that if the prosecutors believed you’re guilty you must be guilty.
Apparently that very clear explanation isn’t enough to not be auto deleted, so…
The judges don’t want to “dishonor” the prosecutors and police by saying “you were wrong” in a court case.
The US Federal Government has a similar conviction rate.
This can be achieved by simply not filing charges unless it is a slam dunk case.
Casually riding your bike when the police will take you in, claim you stole it, yell at you and lock you up for 23 days until you confess will do that to people.
(Don’t ride bikes in Japan as a male foreigner)
Latest Answers