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List Of Shaken Baby Syndrome (SBS) Exonerations in Japan From 2016, Japan has had 7 SBS exonerations. Some of the cases have English reportage, some are in Japanese only. Two decisions came within two days of each other in February, 2020. A disturbing note: five of the seven cases occurred in Osaka prefecture. |
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Case Name Location Date of Incident Date of Arrest |
Defendant's Name(s) (Family First) F=female |
Charges ~~~~ Confessed? |
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Gifu SBS Case Gifu City 2016/May |
Asano Akane (F) 浅野明音 |
Injury to baby. |
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Summary Defendant was charged with injuring a 3 month old baby. The court ruled it likely that the baby fell accidentally from a sofa. After the verdict, the judge offered condolences to the defendant for having to suffer a long trial and false accusations. Court Chronology District Court: 2020/09/25 Not Guilty (Prosecution demanded 5 years.) |
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Case Name Location Date of Incident Date of Arrest |
Defendant's Name(s) (Family First) F=female |
Charges ~~~~ Confessed? |
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Osaka City Mother SBS Case Osaka 2014/Dec |
Name Withheld age 33 at time of incident. |
Injury to baby. |
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Summary Court Chronology District Court: Guilty: 3 year sentence suspended for 5 years. High Court: 2020/02/06 Not Guilty Supreme Court: |
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Case Name Location Date of Incident Date of Arrest |
Defendant's Name(s) (Family First) F=female |
Charges |
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Tachikawa SBS Case Tokyo March 22, 2017 March 2017 |
Chuman Hayato age 40 |
Bodily injury resulting in death. |
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Summary Charged with Inflicting bodily injury to his 1-month-old daughter resulting in death. Court Chronology District Court: 2020/02/07 Not Guilty English Reportage: http://www.asahi.com/ajw/articles/13112172 |
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Case Name Location Date of Incident Date of Arrest |
Defendant's Name(s) (Family First) F=female |
Charges ~~~~ Confessed? |
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Osaka city, Osaka Pref 2015/03/14 2016/11/02 (18 months later) |
Miura Kohei 三浦孝平 (age 26) |
Inflicting serious injury. ~~~ No |
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Summary Charges: violently shaking a 3 month old baby resulting in permanent loss of consciousness. Prosecutors demanded a 5 year sentence. Court Chronology District Court 2019/01/11 Not Guilty. Confirmed High Court Supreme Court |
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Case Name Location Date of Incident Date of Arrest |
Defendant's Name(s) (Family First) F=female |
Charges ~~~~ Confessed? |
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Suita city, Osaka pref. 2016/10/03 |
Narasaki Junji (?) (aged 32) 楢崎 淳二 |
Injury resulting in death. |
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Summary A father was charged with killing his one month old baby. Court Chronology District Court 2018/11/20 Not Guilty. High Court 2020/03/12 Not Guilty. Supreme Court ~~~~ |
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Case Name Location Date of Incident Date of Arrest |
Defendant's Name(s) (Family First) F=female |
Charges ~~~~ Confessed? ~~~~ Incarcerated? |
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Osaka Ibaraki Daugher Death Osaka Ibaraki City Incident: 2014 June Arrest: 2014/Dec |
19 year old mother (name withheld: minor at time of crime). (stepfather) Kishimoto Yuki 岸本友希 |
Abandonment causing injury or death. (punishment of up to 5 years). ~~~~~~~ Causing death through negligence. |
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Summary The mother was tried in a mixed jury trial and found innocent. The prosecution appealed, and the high court remanded the case back to the district court (the high court thought her guilty). The mother appealed to the Supreme Court, and in a very unusual decision, the Supreme Court overturned the remand and affirmed the district court decision. The mother's innocence was confirmed. The stepfather was charged with the same crime, but during the hearings, the prosecution also added the lesser crime of causing death through negligence which is much less severe. He was found guilty of the lesser charge and sentenced to one and half years (without labor), and the sentence was suspended for three years. This sentence was confirmed. Court Chronology District Court: Mother: not guilty 2015/Nov. (mixed jury verdict). Father: guilty 2016/01/28 Death through negligence. Note: this is a relatively minor crime punished by fine only. Confirmed. High Court: Mother: not guilty verdict is overturned. The case is remanded to DC. Defense appeals to the Supreme Court. Supreme Court: 2016/01/28 Mother: HC remand decision is overturned, and orginal DC decision is affirmed. Not guilty verdict is confirmed. |
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Case Name Location Date of Incident Date of Arrest |
Defendant's Name(s) (Family First) F=female |
Charges ~~~~ Confessed? |
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Osaka Grandmother Case Osaka 2016 April 2016/Dec |
Yamauchi Yasuko age = 66 at time of arrest. |
Bodily injury resulting in death. |
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Court Chronology District Court 2017/Oct Guilty: 5 years and 6 months of labor. High Court 2016/04/26 Not Guilty. Confirmed Japanese info: https://news.yahoo.co.jp/byline/yanagiharamika/20191028-00148597/ |
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