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.



Case Name

Location

Date of Incident

Date of Arrest


Defendant's Name(s)

(Family  First)

F=female


Charges

~~~~

Confessed?



Gifu SBS Case

Gifu City

2016/May


Asano Akane (F)

浅野明音

Injury to baby.

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.)




Case Name

Location

Date of Incident

Date of Arrest


Defendant's Name(s)

(Family  First)

F=female


Charges

~~~~

Confessed?



Osaka City Mother SBS Case

Osaka

2014/Dec


Name Withheld

age 33 at time of incident.

Injury to baby.

Summary




Court Chronology


District Court:  Guilty: 3 year sentence suspended for 5 years.



High Court:  2020/02/06  Not Guilty



Supreme Court: 


Case Name

Location

Date of Incident

Date of Arrest


Defendant's Name(s)

(Family  First)

F=female


Charges


Tachikawa SBS Case

Tokyo

March 22, 2017

March 2017

Chuman Hayato

age 40

Bodily injury resulting in death.


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



Case Name

Location

Date of Incident

Date of Arrest


Defendant's Name(s)

(Family  First)

F=female


Charges

~~~~

Confessed?


Osaka Shaken Baby Case

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

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



Case Name

Location

Date of Incident

Date of Arrest


Defendant's Name(s)

(Family  First)

F=female


Charges

~~~~

Confessed?


Suita Shaken Baby Case

Suita city, Osaka pref.

2016/10/03

Narasaki Junji (?) (aged 32) 

楢崎 淳二

Injury resulting in death.

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  ~~~~



Case Name

Location

Date of Incident

Date of Arrest


Defendant's Name(s)

(Family  First)

F=female


Charges

~~~~

Confessed?

~~~~

Incarcerated?


Osaka Ibaraki Daugher Death

Osaka Ibaraki City

Incident: 2014 June

Arrest: 2014/Dec


http://www.jiadep.org/Ibaraki_Daughter.html

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.

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.





Case Name

Location

Date of Incident

Date of Arrest


Defendant's Name(s)

(Family  First)

F=female


Charges

~~~~

Confessed?



Osaka Grandmother Case

Osaka

2016 April

2016/Dec

Yamauchi Yasuko

age = 66 at time of arrest.

Bodily injury resulting in death.


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/