Navy Officer released from custody

[Griz882]

Sentenced to prison for 3 years for equivalent of reckless driving. Allegedly fell asleep at the wheel driving back from Mt Fuji and plowed into parked cars killing two Japanese nationals (elderly mother and son). Later, he claimed that he suffered from acute mountain sickness and blacked out as a result; even though his wife said that he fell asleep at the wheel when interviewed after the crash. Certain politicians in the states believe he got railroaded, loudly called for SOFA to renegotiated, he was denied constitutional due process etc. etc. That ignores that his sentencing was similar to what one could get in the United States, the SOFA doesn't guarantee constitutional rights, and that there didn't seem to be any major shortcomings in how the case was handled, just that they don't understand how the Japanese judicial system works. This exchange or whatever it is was probably the best outcome for the Japanese government to save face, and the US to bring a troop home.

My take is that when it comes to the military, there is the judicial system for those who can get on Fox News, and there is the judicial system for those who don't.

I think you mean more than that. There is the “loss of confidence” but you can go home with your pension system and then there is the since you are enlisted we are going to strip you of three or four grades, give you a Big Chicken Dinner, and send you home with nothing system.

 

[gparks1989]

I think you mean more than that. There is the “loss of confidence” but you can go home with your pension system and then there is the since you are enlisted we are going to strip you of three or four grades, give you a Big Chicken Dinner, and send you home with nothing system.

Yes there are many layers of inequities when it comes to military justice. But this instance focuses more on the example I pointed to.

 

[Uncle Fester]

Sentenced to prison for 3 years for equivalent of reckless driving. Allegedly fell asleep at the wheel driving back from Mt Fuji and plowed into parked cars killing two Japanese nationals (elderly mother and son). Later, he claimed that he suffered from acute mountain sickness and blacked out as a result; even though his wife said that he fell asleep at the wheel when interviewed after the crash. Certain politicians in the states believe he got railroaded, loudly called for SOFA to renegotiated, he was denied constitutional due process etc. etc. That ignores that his sentencing was similar to what one could get in the United States, the SOFA doesn't guarantee constitutional rights, and that there didn't seem to be any major shortcomings in how the case was handled, just that they don't understand how the Japanese judicial system works. This exchange or whatever it is was probably the best outcome for the Japanese government to save face, and the US to bring a troop home.

Three years for falling asleep at the wheel? Would that be a typical sentence in most states? Short of any aggravating factors - DUI, etc.

I'm not disputing what you're saying, I genuinely don't know.

 

[Flash]

I don't have a personal connection, but when we deployed to Misawa a few years ago we were told that the Japanese take American driving violations very seriously. The fact that two people were killed likely makes it even worse.

Sentenced to prison for 3 years for equivalent of reckless driving. Allegedly fell asleep at the wheel driving back from Mt Fuji and plowed into parked cars killing two Japanese nationals (elderly mother and son)...Certain politicians in the states believe he got railroaded...

My take is that when it comes to the military, there is the judicial system for those who can get on Fox News, and there is the judicial system for those who don't.

When we got briefed on the SOFA and Japanese legal stuff one of the things they mentioned was that the wishes of the families can have a significant impact on your punishment, and that while they couldn't tell you what to do apologizing to a victim's family and even offering them compensation for their loss could be a factor in their decision on how serious a punishment would be meted out. From what I've read about the LT's case was that the family members of the Japanese victims was pretty adamant about him being punished, which may have been a factor in his sentence.

Two factors in the attention this case got was the advocacy of his wife and his religion, he's Mormon and several of the politicians who have been the loudest advocates for him are as well. I can understand the wife's advocacy to a degree but the religious aspect bothers me a little bit.

 

[gparks1989]

Three years for falling asleep at the wheel? Would that be a typical sentence in most states? Short of any aggravating factors - DUI, etc.

I'm not disputing what you're saying, I genuinely don't know.

Article I read on the interwebs said sentencing guidelines are something like 2-20 for the offense. It's some mix of reckless driving, second degree manslaughter etc. The negligence being driving while fatigued, I'd imagine.

 

[Random8145]

I guess it works differently here in the U.S. ...? I remember reading once about a guy who fell asleep at the wheel and killed someone and he got off. The family was upset that there was no punishment.

 

[AllAmerican75]

Can someone who knows read us in on The Rest of the Story? Because the Japanese dropping the hammer on a US officer for a car accident seems extreme, unless there’s more to it.

Here's one from the WaPo: https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/2022/08/27/ridge-alkonis-japan-navy-lieutenant-crash/

Here's one from TownHall with a lot of RW spin and editorializing: https://townhall.com/columnists/kur...-pentagons-latest-leadership-failure-n2617279

Here's some more from our most hated retired SWO with only a little RW spin: https://open.substack.com/pub/cdrsa...ost-in-japan?utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web

From what I've read elsewhere (And can't find again right now), LT Alkonis' harsh sentencing is due to political movements within Japan to crack down on American misconduct within their country and Alkonis seems to be caught up in that deep decline in popular sentiment towards American servicemembers from the Japanese.

When we got briefed on the SOFA and Japanese legal stuff one of the things they mentioned was that the wishes of the families can have a significant impact on your punishment, and that while they couldn't tell you what to do apologizing to a victim's family and even offering them compensation for their loss could be a factor in their decision on how serious a punishment would be meted out. From what I've read about the LT's case was that the family members of the Japanese victims was pretty adamant about him being punished, which may have been a factor in his sentence.

Two factors in the attention this case got was the advocacy of his wife and his religion, he's Mormon and several of the politicians who have been the loudest advocates for him are as well. I can understand the wife's advocacy to a degree but the religious aspect bothers me a little bit.

To repeat what I said above, the Japanese government has been getting a lot of pressure from the Japanese people to crack down harder on American servicemembers when they break the law and/or get rowdy. Also in this case is the fact that he killed native Japanese people which the Japanese take very seriously. Furthermore, Japan (Like many nations, including Italy) has very few "rights" for suspected criminals. IIRC you cannot testify if you are a defendant and there are very strict restrictions as to admission of evidence. In short, the stark differences between the American and the Japanese judicial systems led to outrage as did the "harsh" conditions within Japanese prisons. Here are some links from

US Embassy in Japan: https://jp.usembassy.gov/services/prisons/

Japanese Ministry of Justice: https://www.moj.go.jp/EN/kyousei1/kyousei_kyouse03.html

 

[GroundPounder]

I guess it works differently here in the U.S. ...? I remember reading once about a guy who fell asleep at the wheel and killed someone and he got off. The family was upset that there was no punishment.

You never know the actual circumstances, unless you were in court. Sometimes things that sound crazy in a soundbite, make sense when you know the full story.

In Georgia, if " all you did" was fall asleep at wheel and kill someone, it would likely be a misdemeanor. Less than a year of confinement. If you were DUI, racing, driving wrecklessly then it would be a felony with 3-15 on the table. But as crowded as our DOC is, a person most likely would actually stay in a far shorter time.

That being said, you never know with a jury / judge. We had a case where a defendent was found not guilty, even though the entire crime was in crystal clear HD. Guy walked around a store shooting shotgun into ceiling. So you never know.

 

[IKE]

Here's one from TownHall with a lot of RW spin and editorializing: https://townhall.com/columnists/kur...-pentagons-latest-leadership-failure-n2617279

My dumb helo brain thought this was something entirely different. Took me a minute to understand.