A teenager in Japan has been sentenced to death for committing double murder. This verdict was out on Thursday which was given by the nation’s newly-introduced jury system. But what made this report stir the entire nation is that this is the first death penalty given to a 19-year-old minor.
The 19-year-old convict, whose name has been kept secret, was charged for killing both the sister and an acquaintance of his girlfriend at their residence which is located in Miyagi, northern Japan. This brutal murder was committed in February 2010 whose ruling is finally out today.
According to the Japanese Law, people aged below 20 are considered as minor.
The teenager, stabbed to death the victims following his girlfriend broke their relationship, and injuring another man during the attack.
Presiding judge Nobuyuki Suzuki stated that he cannot be sure that he is fully aware of the austerity of the case. The chance of his rehabilitation is very small. Moreover he said that he feels age was not a “decisive” factor is case of death penalties. The accused was 18 years and seven months old at the time when he committed the murders.
The death penalty was determined by six jurors along with three professional judges and this was the first death penalty which is handed down to a minor convict since Japan set up the lay-judge system from last year.
Last week, another verdict was out in which jurors at the Yokohama District Court gave death sentence to a 32-year-old convict for a double murder.
Apart from the United States, Japan is the only nation which carries out capital punishment in spite of drawing huge criticism from European countries and various human rights group.
