Overview
- Japan’s Ministry of Justice, which presented its revised retrial bill to LDP panels on Wednesday, faced a hold as members declined to endorse the plan and asked for further changes.
- The proposal keeps prosecutors’ ability to appeal court decisions that start a retrial but adds limits such as a one-year cap on hearings after an appeal and annual disclosure of the number and reasons for appeals.
- The draft also spells out guidance for when prosecutors should consider filing an appeal to curb filings seen as stretching cases without clear grounds.
- Many LDP lawmakers continue to demand an outright ban on such appeals, saying they prolong proceedings and risk the fading of memories and the deterioration of evidence.
- Without a party agreement, the government may postpone submitting the Criminal Procedure Code amendments to the Diet, leaving people seeking retrials uncertain about when faster reviews might take effect.