NCJ Number
133291
Date Published
1985
Length
13 pages
Annotation
To understand how the law is perceived and enforced in Japan, it is necessary to understand the highly ritualized and structured relationships which are formed in this society to avoid what the Japanese perceive as the destructiveness of uncontrolled emotions. For Americans in particular, it is also important to understand that this formal social structure is the product of a long history.
Abstract
The Japanese criminal code was largely borrowed from Western countries. However, this Western pattern was modified to provide continuity of Japanese authoritarian and centralized hierarchies of power and position. In the Japanese criminal justice system, the police and prosecutors have much more authority than the judiciary. Although the judiciary was strengthened during the American occupation following World War II, it operates with concern for public policy and is careful not to embarrass the government with its decisions. The police in Japan work with more public cooperation than the police of other industrialized nations. The police-citizen relationship is enhanced by a national network of crime prevention committees. The correctional system in Japan is efficient and effective, featuring relatively low escape and recidivism rates. The Japanese also rely on a system of community-based corrections. Victims are involved in the criminal justice process and often receive retribution from the offender. Corruption and organized crime are two major crime problems in Japan, and juvenile delinquency tends to rise even when the general crime rate falls.