Public Prosecutors Office (Japan)
Agency for conducting prosecution in Japan From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Agency for conducting prosecution in Japan From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The Public Prosecutors Office (検察庁, Kensatsu-chō)[3] is the agency for conducting prosecution in Japan. It is an extraordinary organ (特別の機関, Tokubetsu no Kikan) under the Ministry of Justice (法務省, Hōmu-shō).[4] It consists of four tiers of offices: the Supreme Public Prosecutors Office; the High Public Prosecutors Offices (8), the District Public Prosecutors Offices (50); and the Local Public Prosecutors Offices (438).[5]
| Japanese: 検察庁 | |
Public Prosecutors Offices building in Tokyo | |
| Agency overview | |
|---|---|
| Formed | May 3, 1947[1] |
| Preceding agency |
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| Jurisdiction | Japan |
| Employees | 11,863 (2020–21)[2] |
| Minister responsible |
|
| Deputy Minister responsible |
|
| Parent agency | Ministry of Justice (法務省, Hōmu-shō) |
| Website | www |
![[icon]](#/media/File:Wiki_letter_w_cropped.svg){kind=small} | This section needs expansion. You can help by adding to it. (February 2020) |
In 1872, Japan introduced a modern prosecution system following the French system.[6] The 1880 Act provided that public prosecutors had exclusive power of prosecution and it was enforced in 1882.[6] However, the then system adopted preliminary hearings and collection of evidence was placed on pretrial judges.[6] The prosecution department was attached to the courts in 1890.[6]
After the World War II, Japan enacted the new Constitution in 1946, which stipulates the principle of separation of powers, and thus, the prosecution department needed to be separated from the courts.[6] The Public Prosecutor's Office Act (検察庁法, Kensatsu-chō Hō), which established the current prosecution organisations, was enforced on the same day as the new Constitution, 3 May 1947.[1]
The law provides that the Public Prosecutors Office is where the work of public prosecutors (検察官, Kensatsu-kan) is unified.[7] It lays down five ranks of public prosecutors: the Prosecutor-General, the Deputy Prosecutor-General, the Superintending Prosecutors, Public Prosecutors and Assistant Prosecutors.[8]
The prosecutors' independence and impartiality are protected by law with some exceptions under Article 25 of the PPO, such as retirement age, physical/mental disability or supernumerary officials.[9]
The Prosecutor-General (検事総長, Kenji Sōchō) heads the Supreme Public Prosecutors Office.[10] The Deputy Prosecutor-General (次長検事, Jichō Kenji) belongs to the Supreme Public Prosecutors Office and assists the Prosecutor-General.[11] The Prosecutor-General supervises all the staff of the Public Prosecutors Office. Although the Minister of Justice may give general directions on criminal investigation and trial to prosecutors, the Minister can direct only the Prosecutor-General regarding a specific case.[12]
The Superintending Prosecutors (検事長, Kenji-chō) head the High Public Prosecutors Offices and supervise the staff within the jurisdiction.[13]
The appointment and removal of these offices (10 prosecutors) are decided by the Cabinet and attested by the Emperor.[14]
The retirement age of the Prosecutor-General is 65, while that of all the other prosecutors is 63, including the Deputy Prosecutor-General and the Superintending Prosecutors.[15]
Public Prosecutors (検事, Kenji) are assigned to one of the Public Prosecutors Offices and engaged in prosecution. They have the power to investigate any crimes,[16] as well as issue orders to the police about specific investigations.[17] Also, they have the authority to prosecute criminal cases.[18] The Japanese law allows a public prosecutor not to prosecute a suspect when the prosecution is unnecessary due to the circumstances such as his/her age or the gravity of the offence.[19] A suspect will be prosecuted if and only if it is obvious based on evidence that he/she has committed a crime in question and the prosecutor finds it necessary to prosecute him/her.[20]
Public Prosecutors are usually appointed from those who have passed the bar exam (司法試験, Shihō Shiken) and finished the legal apprenticeship (司法修習, Shihō Shūshū).[21][22] As of 1 July 2019[update], 1,788 Public Prosecutors work for the Public Prosecutors Office, while 153 are posted to other ministries or agencies.[23]
Each District Public Prosecutors Office is headed by a Chief Prosecutor (検事正, Kenji-sei) assigned among experienced Public Prosecutors.[24]
Assistant Prosecutors (副検事, Fuku-Kenji) are assigned to one of the Local Public Prosecutors Offices.[25] They have the same authority to investigate and prosecute crimes as Public Prosecutors, though they usually deal with less serious cases.
Assistant Prosecutors are appointed from those who were particular public officials such as prosecutors' assistant officers and police officers and have passed the exam to become assistant prosecutors.[26][27] As of 1 July 2019[update], 770 Assistant Prosecutors work for the Public Prosecutors Office.[23]
There are more than 9,000 Prosecutors' Assistant Officers (検察事務官, Kensatsu Jimu-kan) in the Public Prosecutors Office.[2] They assist public prosecutors in conducting investigations and trials, and also carry out investigations themselves under public prosecutors' direction.[28][29] They assume a wide-ranging role in the Public Prosecutors Office, including work related to prosecution, such as safekeeping of evidence, and general affairs, such as accounts.[30]
The Supreme Public Prosecutors Office (最高検察庁, Saikō Kensatsu-chō, abbr. as 最高検 Saikōken) is located in Tokyo.[31] It is the counterpart of the Supreme Court. It deals with criminal cases in which the High Courts' judgements have been appealed to the Supreme Court.
The SPPO is structured as of 2021:[31]
As of 12 February 2020[update], executives of the Supreme Public Prosecutors Office are as follows:[33][34]
| Office | Executive | Date of appointment | Prior office |
|---|---|---|---|
| Prosecutor-General | Nobuo Inada | 25 July 2018 | Superintending Prosecutor, Tokyo High Public Prosecutors Office |
| Deputy Prosecutor-General | Toru Sakai | 25 July 2018 | Superintending Prosecutor, Sendai High Public Prosecutors Office |
| Director-General, General Affairs Department | Naomi Unemoto | 16 July 2019 | Director-General, Inspection and Guidance Department, Supreme Public Prosecutors Office |
| Director-General, Inspection and Guidance Department | Taiji Oyama | 9 January 2020 | Director-General, Criminal Affairs Bureau, Ministry of Justice |
| Director-General, Criminal Affairs Department | Yoshikazu Ochiai | 26 February 2018 | Chief Prosecutor, Saitama District Public Prosecutors Office |
| Director-General, Public Security Department | Hideaki Yamagami | 2 September 2019 | Deputy Superintending Prosecutor, Tokyo High Public Prosecutors Office |
| Director-General, Trial Department | Masaki Wada | 18 January 2019 | Director-General, Immigration Bureau, Ministry of Justice |
The High Public Prosecutors Offices (高等検察庁, Kōtō Kensatsu-chō, abbr. as 高検 Kōken) are located in 8 major cities in Japan: Tokyo, Osaka, Nagoya, Hiroshima, Fukuoka, Sendai, Sapporo and Takamatsu. Some of the High Public Prosecutors Offices have their branches. These locations correspond to those of the High Courts and their branches.
The High Public Prosecutors Offices deal with criminal cases appealed to the High Courts. In addition, the Tokyo High Public Prosecutors Office is responsible for the detention of a fugitive for the purpose of extradition upon a request from a foreign country.[35]
| High Public Prosecutors Office | Superintending Prosecutor | Deputy Superintending Prosecutor | District Public Prosecutors Offices within the jurisdiction |
|---|---|---|---|
| Tokyo | Hiromu Kurokawa | Shin Kukimoto | Tokyo, Yokohama, Saitama, Chiba, Mito, Utsunomiya, Maebashi, Shizuoka, Kofu, Nagano and Niigata |
| Osaka | Kazuo Sakakibara | Tsuyoshi Unemoto | Osaka, Kyoto, Kobe, Nara, Otsu and Wakayama |
| Nagoya | Makoto Hayashi | Yumiko Kawase | Nagoya, Tsu and Gifu |
| - Kanazawa Branch | Fukui, Kanazawa and Toyama | ||
| Hiroshima | Ryoichi Nakahara | Yuriko Tsunekawa | Hiroshima and Yamaguchi |
| - Okayama Branch | Okayama | ||
| - Matsue Branch | Tottori and Matsue | ||
| Fukuoka | Hiroshi Inoue | Takafumi Sato | Fukuoka, Saga, Nagasaki, Oita and Kumamoto |
| - Miyazaki Branch | Kagoshima and Miyazaki | ||
| - Naha Branch | Naha | ||
| Sendai | Ryotaro Oba | Miyuki Sato | Sendai, Fukushima, Yamagata, Morioka and Aomori |
| - Akita Branch | Akita | ||
| Sapporo | Hiroshi Kataoka | Tomoaki Nitta | Sapporo, Hakodate, Asahikawa and Kushiro |
| Takamatsu | Yukio Kai | Hisashi Yoshida | Takamatsu, Tokushima, Kochi and Matsuyama |
The District Public Prosecutors Offices (地方検察庁, Chihō Kensatsu-chō, abbr. as 地検 Chiken) are located in all the prefectural capitals (47) and 3 large cities in Hokkaido besides Sapporo. Most of them have their branches. These locations correspond to those of the District and the Family Courts and their branches.
Public prosecutors in the District Public Prosecutors Offices carry out investigations and trials of criminal cases. Most cases are referred to prosecutors by the police and other organisations such as customs, but some serious and complex cases are investigated by public prosecutors on their own.[36] Some large District Public Prosecutors Offices have a dedicated investigation department (the Special Investigation Department (特別捜査部, Tokubetsu Sōsa-bu, abbr. as 特捜部 Tokusō-bu) or the Special Criminal Department (特別刑事部, Tokubetsu Keiji-bu)) for serious cases. In particular, many well-known cases are prosecuted by the Special Investigation Department of the Tokyo District Public Prosecutors Office (東京地方検察庁特別捜査部, Tōkyō Chihō Kensatsu-chō Tokubetsu Sōsa-bu, known as 東京地検特捜部 Tōkyō Chiken Tokusō-bu).[37]
The Local Public Prosecutors Offices (区検察庁, Ku Kensatsu-chō, abbr. as 区検 Kuken) deal with criminal investigations and trials of less serious offences. There are 438 offices throughout the country.[5] Their locations correspond to those of the Local Courts.
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