The Liberal Democratic Party's joint policy meeting has approved a reform to the Code of Criminal Procedure that restricts the ability of prosecutors to appeal retrial decisions [1].

This move represents a significant shift in Japan's judicial process. By limiting the power of the state to block retrials, the reform aims to accelerate the path to exoneration for wrongfully convicted individuals, and increase the transparency of the legal system [1].

Under the proposed amendment, the court's decision to start a retrial will be final in most cases. The new rules would generally prohibit prosecutors from filing appeals against such decisions, allowing them to do so only when there is sufficient evidence to justify the challenge [1]. This provision would be formally integrated into the main body of the Code of Criminal Procedure [1].

Keisuke Suzuki, the LDP's chairman of the judicial system research commission, said the contents of the proposal are likely what the public has been demanding [1].

Some members of the party expressed that the compromise was a necessary step forward. Masahiko Shibayama, a former Minister of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology, said he made the decision to proceed with the next steps based on the judgment that it is better to move forward even by half a step, despite his personal heartache [1].

The approval took place during a joint meeting on May 7, 2024 [2]. While some reports indicated a plan for the government to finalize the proposal via cabinet decision the following day and submit it to the Diet, other reports suggested a delay in the submission of the bill to the legislature [1, 2].

“The new rules would generally prohibit prosecutors from filing appeals against such decisions.”

For decades, Japanese prosecutors have used the right to appeal retrial orders to delay proceedings, often leaving defendants in prison for years while the legal battle continued. By codifying a general prohibition on these appeals, the Japanese government is responding to mounting public pressure and international criticism regarding the fairness of its criminal justice system, specifically concerning the rights of the accused in long-term appeals processes.