Value of US base land in Japan enough to buy all of New York City

[RobertRousselot]

Well, I personally hope they get to finish their sentence here AND THEN do their military prison stint.

I have heard, but can’t say how true it is, that the longest prison sentence you can get is 10 years. Even for murder. If that is the case Japanese sentencing practices are pretty pathetic.
The only problem with Japanese detention is that “confessions” are sometimes extracted by force and prosecutors won’t normally try a case unless they are reasonablely sure they can win it.
The use of "force" can be one of several methods which do not always physical marks. Sleep deprivation is one method. In Japan you can be detained for up to 21 days without being charged.
Which explains a high conviction rate in Japan.

[Andrew S]

I have heard, but can’t say how true it is, that the longest prison sentence you can get is 10 years. Even for murder. If that is the case Japanese sentencing practices are pretty pathetic.

I've heard that it's 20, with a possible death penalty only for multiple homicide. Which is still pretty pathetic.

In Japan you can be detained for up to 21 days without being charged.

One reason I make sure I don't do anything stupid.

But murder is murder, and I'm sure most people would see it as a miscarriage of justice for a murderer from another country to be returned home to complete their sentence.

[ShaneLayton]

When I was in the Marine Corps we deployed to Okinawa for 6-month periods. There was a feeling among most of the Marines I served with that the civilian population was lucky to have us there and that they should feel grateful. For a lot of us grunts there was an attitude of "we won the war, you lost the war, deal with it." That was a very bad attitude, and the chain of command did a lot to try and educate the troops about that. We ceartainly had a lot of the "big ugly American" in us. I like to think that I was not like that, but I was also a budoka so I had a different perspective.

That being said, there is an economic benefit to the citizens on Okinawa. The land our bases sit on may be valuable, but just cleaning it up enough to turn it over might be prohibitively expensive. Does this benefit outweigh the burden placed on the population? I don't know. I do know that I would not be happy to have a foreign military parked permanently in my back yard. Especially if my taxes were paying for it.

I doubt the US will ever redeploy its military from Japan permanently. It may be reduced, but it won't disappear. It serves our strategic interests to have military personnel forward-deployed in the region. It has been suggested that we redeploy to Guam, but that does not make sense. Guam is not large enough to hold all the military personnel from Japan. Guam and Hawaii are too far from the region to be considered "forward-deployed." I think the best answer is to ensure that American troops stationed are educated and trained to understand that they are to act as guests, not conquerers.

Just my 2 cents.

Shane

[Andrew S]

I think the best answer is to ensure that American troops stationed are educated and trained to understand that they are to act as guests, not conquerers.

Excellent attitude, Shane. If only more shared it, I'm sure there'd be less ill-feeling all round.

[Cla68]

I believe that transferring foreign prisoners in Japan back to their home countries to serve the remainder of their sentences is a relatively new policy that Japan signed-off on with some other countries recently. I read about it in articles concerning Nick Baker who hopes to serve the remainder of his sentence for drug smuggling in the UK instead of Japan. I understand that the agreement is that the prisoner has to serve at least 1/3 of their sentence in Japan before they are eligible for transfer. In Nick Baker's case, I believe he won't be eligible for transfer until 2008 or 9.

If the crime committed by the US servicemember is against a non-servicemember, the military usually won't try to incarcerate them if it feels their sentence from the foreign or civilian authorities was sufficiently severe. I believe this is the case with the three Okinawa rapists. I understand that after serving their seven years in Japanese prison that they were immediately discharged from the military upon their return to the US. Nevertheless, with this new "1/3-2/3" policy, I could see that some US military prisoners in Japan could do 1/3 of their sentence at Kurihama or Fuchu and the remainder at the main US military prison at Leavenworth.

[RobertRousselot]

Just another bit of info I heard and not sure if it is true either.
Being arrested and sent to prison in Japan will not show up on a background check in the US.

[Cla68]

Unless that arrest and conviction is entered into the various databases that US law enforcement and government agencies use to track criminal histories of US citizens and residents, then no, a conviction and incarceration in the Japanese judicial system probably wouldn't show up. A Google search might turn up the background of some of them since their names are published in news accounts relating to their crimes and trials.

[Cla68]

I've heard that it's 20, with a possible death penalty only for multiple homicide. Which is still pretty pathetic.

One reason I make sure I don't do anything stupid.

But murder is murder, and I'm sure most people would see it as a miscarriage of justice for a murderer from another country to be returned home to complete their sentence.

Perhaps we could discuss the pros and cons of the Japanese approach to criminal punishment and rehabilitation as a separate thread. I believe the Japanese definitely have a different approach and agenda in how they deal with suspected offenders and convicted criminals. Like most culturally-influenced programs or systems, it has its upsides and downsides.

[MikeCallender]

Cla68--you are certainly right about the US not owning the landing of military bases, but rather "renting" the land from the Japanese Government. When stationed at Kadena AB, we would occasionally have to escort a contingent of surveyors and landowners out to the middle of the airfield so that they could visually inspect the rented property. I recall one such parcel of land was very small (less than one square meter) at the approach end of runway 5R. The landowners do get reimbursed by the Japanese Government for the "use" of the land.