By The American teenager that tied a rope across a road and nearly killed a Japanese moped rider has gotten off rather light considering what he did:
A Japanese court sentenced an American teen to a suspended two-year prison term Friday for stringing a rope across a street near Yokota Air Base that caused serious injury to a Japanese motorist.
The 19-year-old — the son of an U.S. Air Force officer based at Yokota who still lives with his parents — did not necessarily intend to hurt anyone with the prank gone wrong, the three-judge panel ruled, but “he should have known better … and must be held criminally responsible.”
He was convicted of bodily injury and obstructing traffic, and faced up to 15 years in prison. But his suspended sentence means he will avoid prison if he does not commit any more crimes in Japan for the next three years. His name has been withheld from court proceedings and his identity was protected during the trial because he is considered a minor under Japanese law. [Stars & Stripes]
Read the rest at the link, but get this according to his lawyer he is thinking about appealing this ruling.
2:00 pm on November 19th, 2010 1
I didn't know you can get away with attempted murder so easily.
3:22 pm on November 19th, 2010 2
Sounds like a sociopath.
It also sounds like the judges are a bit clueless about such people.
4:08 pm on November 19th, 2010 3
This stupid punk could have KILLED somebody! I guess I'm just too old fashioned & out of touch to understand the modern world.
5:27 pm on November 19th, 2010 4
In handing down his ruling, the judge said: “This incident had no purpose or clear motive. It was nothing but troublemaking, dangerous, illegal and vicious.”
7:37 pm on November 19th, 2010 5
Sounds like what a Korean court would do, when sentencing white foreigners. They don't want to hurt their country's image by being harsh to Westerners.
9:41 pm on November 19th, 2010 6
oh tom … when was the last time, that a Korean court imposed a sentence on a chaebol member that wasn'tget pardoned ? Responsibility / accountability ain't alive in Korea.
10:23 pm on November 19th, 2010 7
Well, I was all set to respond to Tom that, while he's right, the relatively light sentence (probably suspended, and likely involving deportation unless the White teen had family in Korea) would be typical of light sentencing in general in Korea, particularly if the culprit expressed contrition before the court and didn't have a record.
So Tom was baiting, and Simon took the bait, and Simon is right, but for the same reason.
See, it's not a race or nationality issue. It's an issue of crime and punishment in general in Korea.
But hold on, last I checked, this was 요코타, in Japan, not 욕호동, in Korea. So why are we starting up a race-infused bitch fest about this happening in Korea? sure
1:14 am on November 20th, 2010 8
Race is very important in this case, because it does. After all, how in the world do you explain why Korea has separate prisons for western prisoners who are given their kitchens to cook their own food, entertainment, hobbies, and more visiting rights? Western criminals in Korea are treated with kid gloves. If they get to serve time, if at all. Most of the drug offenders from the West serve maybe few days in jail, and get to be deported.
3:05 am on November 20th, 2010 9
Maybe he was just stringing the judge along until he reached the end of his rope which resulted in a hung jury… or maybe it really was knot his fault.
3:13 am on November 20th, 2010 10
Good one.
4:13 am on November 20th, 2010 11
Tom wrote:
How do I explain it? I don't have to, because the rope case occurred in Japan, which has nothing to do with how foreign nationals may or may not be treated in prison in Korean. As usually, you are trolling and trying to agitate by injecting a foreigner-versus-Korean narrative where there isn't one.
How does this relate to Japan, Tom? The crime was committed in Japan and a Japanese court inexplicably let the sociopath go free.
When you interject with "Sounds like what a Korean court would do," all you are doing is trolling.
4:36 am on November 20th, 2010 12
Welcome back TOM.
Get him (her/them) KUSHIBO!
More fun than a sunday picnic.
5:54 am on November 20th, 2010 13
Thank you my Hill Billy Retired GI.
"How does this relate to Japan, Tom? The crime was committed in Japan and a Japanese court inexplicably let the sociopath go free.
When you interject with “Sounds like what a Korean court would do,” all you are doing is trolling."
How am I trolling, Kushibo, when it's true? Japanese court has similar judicial system as Korea's. That's because Korea was under the Japanese colonial administration one time, and the same Japanese judicial system was transplanted. They both have similar state of lax persecution based on subjective reasonings such as, are you showing enough contrition, are you 3-D foreign worker who cry about the harsh life working in a Korean factory, are you a Westerner foreigner who are not used to kimchi and rice everyday and who won't be able to handle 5 people in a single cell with no bed? If you are the latter, we have separate different prison for you, so that you can have your own cell with nice cushy beds, TV, kitchen, books, internet, food delivery, and other kinds of luxuries that Korean prisoners can only dream of.
Because you know, we can't have Westerners in Western countries accusing us of racism against Americans, Canadians, or Europeans, and abusing their "human rights".
Remember the Michael Faye and Singapore fiasco back in the early 90's? Even Bill Clinton tried to get involved so that the vandal boy wouldn't get lashed. Korean government, as well as the Japanese, don't want that. So, unless Westerner commits some hineous crime, they will rather let Western criminals go free, back to their countries so that they won't make a fuss and bring negative international publicity.
I'm just stating the truth, so why are you trying to get me banned again?
6:25 am on November 20th, 2010 14
I've been to the foreigner prison in Cheonan. It's a pretty comfortable place, as far as prisons go. It's where they keep everyone except for the Chinese, who are kept in an allegedly tougher prison in Daejon. The prison in Cheonan was originally built for child criminals.
7:33 am on November 20th, 2010 15
^ See?
9:09 am on November 20th, 2010 16
#13 Tommy Two Face
Good to have you back, I think? In quasi-complaining about: "They both have similar state of lax persecution based on subjective reasonings such as, are you showing enough contrition, are you 3-D foreign worker who cry……", your complaining about your own countrymen's ideology of your own country's criminal system. Whether or not there is any truth to lax sentencing for foriegn nationals via the "negative international publicity" route, you might want to consider taking that issue up with your own politicians. Again, S. Korea is an autonomous nation? Correct?
"I’m just stating the truth, so why are you trying to get me banned again?"
Logic might dictate that you, YOURSELF, was responsible for getting banned. You find it mighty easy to blame others for this phenomena. Whoa, you are truly a Korean!
Tommy,
You took a story based in Japan and converted it to a "pro-Han defense stance against the western world". Are you even conscious that this has been your M.O. for most of the opinions you state on this site? This and other blatent inflammatory remarks just might be the reason why GI Korea decided to give you a week off.
For the record. I agree with you, the lax reasoning and "verbal contrition" of the Korean justice system is sad. It's sad that a foriegner whose guilty of a drug related crime receives a percieved light sentence and it's equally sad that a soju-soaked ajjoshi, who rapes a young girl, also receives a perceived non-sentence. But again, these laws reflect YOUR people.
10:27 am on November 20th, 2010 17
Tom 13, I think that kid in Singapore was innocent. Their evidence against him included nonsense like this: he had a supply of chewing gum at home.
11:40 am on November 20th, 2010 18
Of course he was innocent. He was an American. Americans can't ever be guilty of anything.
11:49 am on November 20th, 2010 19
The kid in Singapore deserved caning, he did spray paint the cars, and everyone in the world knows that is wrong. He didn't think he'd get caught, or counted on his status. I'm glad he got caned.
The kid in Japan deserves much more than what he got. Period. This was a terrible incident and he's getting away with it.
12:05 pm on November 20th, 2010 20
Tom, Korean courts are notorious for giving light or suspended sentences to almost every offender, no matter their nationality- especially in the cases of sexual assault and business tycoon crimes.
Get off it!
This story is about JAPAN, not Korea. Not related to Korea at all!
Those Chilean miners were trapped underground for a long time and now some New Zealand miners are trapped underground. Please explain to us how these are both cases of the white man oppressing Korea!
1:30 pm on November 20th, 2010 21
Who said White man is oppressing Korea?
I think White man can't oppress Korea, because Koreans won't let them. That's why they're frustrated. They're so used to having their own way at home. So when they don't get their way, that's when they rant on Korea related blogs how Korea is suppressing and oppressing them.
1:45 pm on November 20th, 2010 22
"Tom, Korean courts are notorious for giving light or suspended sentences"
Do you see any Korean criminal prisoners enjoying a hotel stay at Cheonan prison? Nope. So why do Koreans allow such exclusive privilidge to Western prisoners? Because if they don't give them their hotel..er.. I mean prison..they'll go to their embassy to complain, call the human rights commissions, bring Western reporters to claim being abused they are. Then when they get out, they write a book on how they were tortured by the Korean jail guards, and how horrible Korean prisons are where they torture people alive. All the pain and aggravations aren't worth it to Korean judges. So their favorite method of dealing with this is they rather deport than send them to prison. In cases where they absolutely must punish a Westerner (like murder), then they send them to prisons like the Cheonan where they are made sure to stay happy so that they won't talk to Western reporters to bring bad publicity to Korea. How is that related to Japan? That's because Japan is very similar in that regard. They, like Korea, are much more lenient to white faces.
4:18 pm on November 20th, 2010 23
Why don't you try telling the whole story for once – instead of twisting facts around to support your statments?
ONLY SOFA status prisoners live the way you describe. All other foreigners – regardless of where they're from – live in conditions worse than the Korean prisoners and they are treated much worse than the Korean prisoners.
5:21 pm on November 20th, 2010 24
Why don't you stop the BS'ing,guitar ?
6:20 pm on November 20th, 2010 25
Benicio74 wrote:
I had thought about saying this exact same point but I chose not to, since this story has nothing to do with Korea but has everything to do with the young man in Japan who nearly killed a twenty-three-year-old woman in Japan who was commuting on her scooter. But since the beneficent Benicio74 has chosen to make this point, I will simply state my agreement.
Actually, it wouldn't be hard to do so.
The United States, run by a White-dominated elite, is a blackhole of resources which greedily sucks up all the energy it can. Because of the United States, there is an insatiable demand for coal, oil, and other forms of energy. In a globalized economy controlled by a handful of mostly White elites, insatiable and increasing demand for a small number of resources means that the workers in coal mines must stretch their productivity, usually sacrificing safety, their health, and even their lives. This is true whether the energy resources are found in Chile, New Zealand, China, or South Korea: People die for the White Man's comfort and wasteful lifestyle. Once the coal vein is depleted, as it is in many parts of South Korea, the workers are cast aside like useless eggshells.
Please do not respond to this. Not because it is a perfect argument that cannot be refuted, but only because it is nothing meant as performance art, demonstrating what a troll might say to push a few buttons. It is not meant to be commented on, and you're a pabo if you try to refute it.
6:23 pm on November 20th, 2010 26
Guitard, foreign prisoners don't have it so bad, and probably as good or better than Korean nationals. KrZ, a frequent commenter at The Marmot's Hole, even said he's pick Korean prison over US prison. He has experienced both.
But this is off topic. It has nothing to do with the poor woman in Japan who was got her skull cracked open thanks to a sociopath that the Japanese court system has let free instead of giving a proper sentence for attempted murder.
6:30 pm on November 20th, 2010 27
Tom Wrong (again). Where are the facts that support your claims? Your wild claims and statements unsupported by any document or reference indicate you are Asian and specifically Chinese. Your inability to reason or think differentiates you from the Western style of thinking. Your school taught memorization and not thinking. Therefore you understand 5X5=25, but you can not understand nor can you apply the same reasoning to other problems.
I picture you opening your mouth to say something and the visual reference I see is simply your words expelled as a turd.
8:00 pm on November 20th, 2010 28
Marcus Ambrose 19, I'm serious. The evidence was garbage. Extracted confessions, and stupidity about chewing gum. It was illegal to chew gum in Singapore. He couldn't buy it in stores, so he had a stash at home. When the police searched his house, they found it. That showed that he was a trouble-maker. I think that kid was innocent.
8:23 pm on November 20th, 2010 29
Lemmy, here's your proofs.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/8530836.stm
http://joongangdaily.joins.com/article/view.asp?a…
9:14 pm on November 20th, 2010 30
Touche, Kushibo!
9:19 pm on November 20th, 2010 31
kushibo 25, which is a better use of your time, writing comments you don't mean or finishing Somewhere Inside?
10:07 pm on November 20th, 2010 32
“We did not invest a lot more to open this prison and facilitate foreigners,” said an official at the Justice Ministry who declined to be named. “At present, DVD rooms and educational classes exist in other jails as well. The foreigner prison was opened with the aim of better facilitating foreign prisoners who are not familiar with Korean language and culture.”
#22 Tom Wrong wrote- "Do you see any Korean criminal prisoners enjoying a hotel stay at Cheonan prison? Nope. So why do Koreans allow such exclusive privilidge to Western prisoners?"
In the 25 Feb 2010 article Tom references in the JoongAng Korea Daily- "The prison can house 1,230 convicts, though it currently holds only 854. Of this number, 591 are foreigners."
Tom, again you must have fallen ill during the basic algebra classes referencing WORK PROBLEMS.
Next, if Korea is so concerned about the image Korean prisons present to the world as far as human rights, why build the "foreigner" prison? Do Korean prisons violate the human rights of Korean's? You, Tom, should investigate this and get Amnesty International a call. They may bring Korea's prisons up to human rights standards.
"We did not invest a lot more to open this prison and facilitate foreigners,” said an official at the Justice Ministry who declined to be named. “At present, DVD rooms and educational classes exist in other jails as well. The foreigner prison was opened with the aim of better facilitating foreign prisoners who are not familiar with Korean language and culture.” "
Tom, tell me what westerner would want to watch a t.v. program in Russian, Chinese or Arabic?
And why do the prisons force Korean Culture on foreign prisoners?
Tom, did you even read the articles? Or is your reading comprehension so poor you simply didn't understand?
11:49 pm on November 20th, 2010 33
I think Lemmy is one of the prisoners in that foreigner only hotel prison. That explains his justification of this blatant discrimination toward Koreans.
2:10 am on November 21st, 2010 34
Obviously he has access to the internet courtesy of the ROK prison authorities.
3:14 am on November 21st, 2010 35
Tom "The Imbicile" Wrong – though drawing you a picture in my post above, I will re-post something I you should understand with some explination. An article you referenced says "The prison currently holds only 854 Of this number, 591 are foreigners.
Who are the other 263 not classified as foreigners?
7:16 am on November 21st, 2010 36
First Chickenhead co-opted the group – now Tom has star power. Can't be the Stockholm syndrome, must be the latent "I'm so stupid – kick me" need deep down in the human mind.
1:54 pm on November 21st, 2010 37
Glans wrote:
Realistically, Glans, I probably won't get to my review until after this semester is over. My mistake was letting my mom have the book before I got to it. When I get it done, I'll post a note at OFK and here, if our agitprop friend in Toronto hasn't gotten me banned for making sense.
In the meantime, however, feel free to drop me a line to share a thought or two in private, if you like.
5:26 pm on November 21st, 2010 38
Glans… please.
Stop yapping about Somewhere Inside.
I read your Amazon review. It was sincere… but it had the tone of a middle school essay explaining why the Fat Girl would make an OK girlfriend.
She might… and the book might be readable in its own way. But you haven't sold it well… or really even tried.
In fact, every time you throw in an unrelated one-liner about how someone should read it, it gets more and more creepy…
…like those sincere-yet-unhinged people who knock on your door on Saturday morning and ask if you have found their particular flavor of God… or, maybe, the twitchy guy who asks if you would like to see a grown man naked as a little spittle hangs from his lower lip.
If you honestly think it is necessary to read, you can clearly explain why… and you can summarize some of the key points that explain away any misconceptions we might have in thinking Ling and Lee are self-promoting, self-serving scumbags.
If you can't do that, then you are just messin' with us… in which case, it's fair to mess back.
5:36 pm on November 21st, 2010 39
ChickenHead wrote:
To be fair, ChickenHead, since Glans and I frequently run into each other at One Free Korea and discuss at length things like Laura Ling's captivity, and since I made quite a big deal about my opposition to the book (which Lisa Ling later sent me), it doesn't seem so creepy to me. I have been promising a review for some months now, yet here I am tilting at agitprop windmills.
Ten thousand apologies for taking this thread further off topic.
1:27 pm on November 22nd, 2010 40
"The 19-year-old — the son of an U.S. Air Force officer based at Yokota who still lives with his parents…"
I would hardly call a 19 year old a teenager. And why would he still be living with his parents? I thought command sponsorship only covered 18 and younger dependents. If he is still considered a dependent then he must have some mental deficiencies.
If he is considered competent, is there a Japanese visa for foreigners milking off there parents? This article raises more questions.
1:58 pm on November 22nd, 2010 41
There is nothing to speculate about.
Dependent children who stick around after graduating from high school are universally worthless scumbags…
…who are, almost without exception, intentionally up to no good.
In fairness, he may have been an 18 year-old student when this happened and he has been forced to stick around at his parent's house while the case worked its way through the legal system.
Then again, stringing a rope across traffic under any situation screams of being a worthless scumbag intentionally up to no good.