Police interrogations on video

The Democratic Party of Japan's election manifesto calls for all interrogations of criminal suspects by investigators to be recorded on video, to (1) prevent prolonging a trial because of differences in opinion between public prosecutors and defense counsel members over the reliability of the record of a suspect's oral statement, and (2) prevent false charges resulting from confessions made under duress.

In news conferences after their appointment to Cabinet posts, both Justice Minister Keiko Chiba and National Safety Commission Chairman Hiroshi Nakai said they will work hard to fulfill the election promise. At the same time, Mr. Nakai said investigators must be allowed to employ the "weapons" of plea bargaining, sting operations and undercover probes to help uncover more crimes and increase the number of arrests and indictments. Mr. Nakai seems to think that the introduction of these investigative methods will reduce investigators' opposition to full videotaping of the interrogation process.

For their part, the police and public prosecutors say full videotaping of interrogations will make it difficult for investigators to elicit confessions by establishing trustful relationships with suspects.

Because interrogations are conducted without the presence of suspects' lawyers, the possibility cannot be ruled out that some suspects make false confessions when responding to leading questions by investigators or to avoid prolonged interrogation. Cases of serious false charges remain fresh in our memory, including that of Mr. Toshikazu Sugaya, who was released in June on the strength of a new DNA test after he had served 17 years of a life sentence for the 1990 murder of a 4-year-old girl in Ashikaga, Tochigi Prefecture.

A long period of study will be needed before plea bargaining, undercover investigation and sting operations are introduced. Mr. Nakai should not regard the introduction of these methods as preconditions for full videotaping of the interrogation process.