＜prologue＞
I started a blog called “The Baby Boomer Generation’s Miscellaneous Blog”（Dankai-sedai no garakutatyou:団塊世代の我楽多（がらくた）帳） in July 2018, about a year before I fully retired. More than six years have passed since then, and the number of articles has increased considerably.
So, in order to make them accessible to people who don’t understand Japanese, I decided to translate my past articles into English and publish them.
It may sound a bit exaggerated, but I would like to make this my life’s work.
It should be noted that haiku and waka （Japanese short fixed form poems） are quite difficult to translate into English, so some parts are written in Japanese.
If you are interested in haiku or waka and would like to know more, please read introductory or specialized books on haiku or waka written in English.
I also write many articles about the Japanese language. I would be happy if these inspire more people to want to learn Japanese.
my blog’s URL:団塊世代の我楽多（がらくた）帳 | 団塊世代が雑学や面白い話を発信しています
my X’s URL:団塊世代の我楽多帳（@historia49）さん / X
The “lay judge system” is a system that allows ordinary citizens to participate in trials, which was introduced in 2009 with the aim of improving Japan’s judicial system. The legal basis for this system is the “Act on Criminal Trials with Lay Judges” (abbreviated as the “Lay Judge Act”).
This system is modeled on the “jury system” used in the United States and the United Kingdom, and the “lay judge system” used in France and Italy.
My understanding is that this system was established in an attempt to introduce “citizen participation” into trials, in order to reflect in trials the “sense of the public,” which differs from the sense of professional judges.
1. What is the “jury system”?
The “jury system” is a judicial system in which a panel of jurors (not including a judge) randomly selected from the public determines facts through deliberation during civil and criminal proceedings.
In this way, the jury can only determine guilt or innocence, and the sentencing (determination of the sentence) is left to the judge.
(1) Advantages
You can expect more common sense and sound judgment than a professional judge. Also, it may take less time to reach a conclusion.
(2) Disadvantages
Ordinary citizens are easily swayed by emotions and may not be able to make rational decisions.
2. What is the “lay judge system”?
The “lay judge system” is a judicial system in which lay judges selected by voters (citizens) for each case participate in the hearings together with the judge in certain criminal trials, such as those for serious crimes.
(1) Advantages
The voice of citizens with common sense is reflected in the judgment. Professional judges tend to make decisions based on past cases and precedents for sentencing, but this adds common sense to the judgment.
(2) Disadvantages
If you are selected as a juror and participate in a trial, not only will it take up a lot of your time, but you will also suffer from mental anguish from looking at photos of the victim’s body, and psychological stress disorder if you need to impose a heavy sentence, such as the death penalty, on the defendant.
3. Future issues for the “lay judge system”
It’s been 10 years since the “lay judge system” was introduced, but it doesn’t seem like Japanese trials have changed dramatically. On the contrary, I think there are more disadvantages than drastic changes.
Also, even if lay judges make decisions that put “public opinion” at the forefront, professional judges often revise them, and in the end, I think they often reach a conclusion that is not much different from the past, “based on precedents and sentencing standards…”
To all those involved in the judicial system, could you please take this 10th anniversary as an opportunity to carry out a comprehensive review of the lay judge system?
First and foremost, a review to prioritize citizen sensibilities, redesigning the system so that citizen opinions are more strongly reflected in judgments, but if this is not possible, I think the time has come to consider abolishing the lay judge system.
