True crime Japan : thieves, rascals, killers and dope heads : true stories from a Japanese courtroom / Paul Murphy.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Murphy, Paul, 1968- author.

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Crime--Japan.

Crime.

Criminals.

Organized crime.

Japan.

Organized crime--Japan.

Criminals--Japan.

Criminal investigation--Japan.

Criminal investigation.

Physical Description:

256 pages ; 21 cm

Edition:

First edition.

Place of Publication:

Routland, Vermont : Tuttle Publishing, [2016]

Summary:

"A middle-aged carpenter beats his 91-year old mother to death and goes to work the following day, leaving the body for his wife to find. An 82-year old woman is jailed for 10 months for stealing fried chicken. Like nearly all defendants in Japan, they both plead guilty. What happens between plea and sentencing is the subject of True Crime Japan. In this fascinating crime book journalist and longtime Japan resident Paul Murphy provides a glimpse of Japanese society through a year's worth of criminal court cases in Matsumoto, a city 140 miles to the west of Tokyo. The defendants in these cases range from ruthless mobsters to average citizens, often committing similar crimes in rather different ways, and for different reasons. Based on court hearings and interviews with the defendants, their families, neighbors and lawyers--Murphy explores not only the motives of offenders, but the culture of crime and punishment in Japan. The resulting true crime book provides a lens through which to view this honor-shame based, conformist culture, and shows how, in its role within that culture, the court system reveals Japan to be, surprisingly to some, a land of true individuals"-- Provided by publisher.

Contents:

1 House Proud 13

2 Late in Life 35

3 Gangsters 63

4 Perverts 95

5 Mama's Boys 123

6 Drug in Tolerance 149

7 Fessing Up 167

8 Mother Killers 189

9 Learning From Japan 215

10 Conclusion 253.

ISBN:

9784805313428

4805313420

OCLC:

936347635