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Younghusband
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Younghusband

Date

January 18th, 2007

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A strange encounter…

Tonight I was stopped on the street by a Japanese policeman for questioning. He came up to me and asked me how long I had been in the Nagoya Port area (I was picking up a bento and heading back to my office, which is in the Port area) and what I was doing in Japan. I told him I have only been here for a few weeks and that I work in the area. I asked him if I had done anything wrong. He told me that there had been a mugging in the Port area this evening and they attacker was described as being a foreigner with blue eyes. I pointed at my eyes and said “I don’t have blue eyes.” He replied that the body type was similar and asked me my height. I told him my office was around the corner and I could easily provide an alibi for every minute of the day. He said that wasn’t necessary. I told him to hold on a minute and called Lady YH to double-check what my rights are. I am a supporter of police have no problem helping them catch a a criminal. On the otherhand, the Japanese police and foreigners haven’t mixed well in the past, and I do want to know my rights. Unfortunately my mobile battery died before the Lady could give me any guidance. The policeman looked terribly uncomfortable and told me that I didn’t have to answer any questions at all if I didn’t want to. I told him I have no problem answering certain questions but there was a line (even though I wasn’t sure exactly where that line was at this point). I answered a few more questions and then Lady YH came running up (the office is literally 1 minute away). She talked to him while I paid for my bento. When I came back out of the store the Lady said everything was okay and we could go. I called out to the officer and asked him for his card (common sense in Canada, but he seemed surprised so maybe it isn’t common in Japan). Lady YH asked if our information was going to be put “in the system.” He said “No.” I asked him if he was going to write a report, to which he replied “Yes.” And what happens to that report? He explained that it would be passed up to the detectives working the case. Umm… isn’t that considered being “in the system”? Good thing this guy is not leading the investigation.

Anyways, that is my first experience be questioned by police for armed assault inside or outside of Japan. I was caught off guard and have never really thought about how to handle such a situation. Do you think I was paranoid? What did I do wrong? What could I have done better? One thing I do regret is not asking if anyone was hurt during the robbery. Please relate any similar experience in the comments.

Comments to this entry

Darin
January 18, 2007
2:06 pm
He told me that there had been a mugging in the Port area this evening and they attacker was described as being a foreigner with blue eyes. I pointed at my eyes and said "I don't have blue eyes."Â?
Well you know, all foreigners have blue eyes. ;) Sounds dodgy to me.
Chirol
January 18, 2007
2:28 pm
Those darn blue eyed devils.

You should have wooed him with your Victorian charms.

Sorry to hear about the incident, glad it turned out ok.
Joe
January 18, 2007
2:47 pm
I was stopped by a cop while I was riding my bike in Nihombashi, just north of the Ginza area.

Well, actually, I didn't stop: he was calling out to me, but I kept riding. So he pulled up beside me and kept shouting "Excuse me!"

Finally, I stopped, staying on my bike, and asked him what he wanted. He said he was conducting an investigation because of a theft somewhere.

I said "Officer, I'm really sorry, I'm in a hurry to get to class." Which was partly true. I was in a hurry to stop in Ginza and order a birthday cake for the lady before going to class.

"Where's your class?" he said.

I told him where my school was. It was actually in the opposite direction of where I was headed at the time (I was riding northeast and the school was to the south), but he didn't seem to notice that small problem in the facts.

"Okay... sorry about that!" he said, and he rode off.

Maybe he was a rookie. Who knows.
Curzon
January 18, 2007
3:26 pm
Your rights? You have the right to remain silent, but you weren't under arrest and hadn't done anything, so I'm not sure that would have been in your best interest. Silence is narrowly defined: he can ask for your name and your foreigner registration card, but you can ask for his ID first (and that's the first thing I do in any encounter with a police officer). But you were just being asked questions, not detained in anyway, and I would have ended the conversation with "dude, like, I don't have blue eyes, stop trying to get up in my grill."

The officer seemed polite enough. I've never had a bad experience in Japan with cops, and they're much more polite and mannered than US cops (who are, in general, a disgrace). I'm not sure what you mean by "Japanese police and foreigners don't mix." As long as neither party has a chip on his or her shoulder, problems rarely arise.

Because the police in Japan can detain you for *weeks* with probable cause, I would recommend saying in any situation where you are a suspect to give them your business card, and tell them to call you if they have any questions. If they do ask you to go to the station, take your lawyer. BTW, this is also what to do if you're accused of groping on the subway or any other crime -- strongly deny it, give them your business card if they want to make a formal complaint, and walk away. That way, if you are called to make a statement, you can talk a lawyer with you and stop them from detaining you for weeks on end.
Alfred Russel Wallace
January 18, 2007
8:04 pm
Yes, I was puzzled... did he ask for identification? did he write it down? My feeling is that one should be as helpful as possible, and of course polite, without giving more than is needed... After all, if you were the person reporting the crime, you would want the police to make a serious effort to investigate. It seems as if this one was relying on you to break into a sweat and make a dash for it, thereby revealing your guilt...
subadei
January 18, 2007
9:07 pm
Interesting. Maybe he thought you were military.
Sonagi
January 18, 2007
10:03 pm
Curzon wrote:

The officer seemed polite enough. I've never had a bad experience in Japan with cops, and they're much more polite and mannered than US cops (who are, in general, a disgrace).

Comparing Japanese and US cops is a bit unfair. It's easy to be polite when you're not getting shot at by drug dealing gangs armed with weaponry that can pierce your bullet-proof vest.
I Dream Awake » Blog Archive » What To Do If You Are Stopped By The Cops…
January 19, 2007
12:45 am
[...] …in Japan. A very useful primer from the ever helpful folks at Coming Anarchy. [...]
ElamBend
January 19, 2007
1:38 am
Sonagi,
You're way overblowing the risk to police offices and it stems from a fallacy that came up during the drug war, particularly in the late eighties when police were looking for a relaxation of the 4th amendment rules to allow no knock raids (the original argument was that dangerous 'Jamaican' drug gangs made it too dangerous to knock). If you look at the stats, NY with the most cops killed for any city lost "526":http://home1.gte.net/vzn05sxc/lawfacts.htm officers from 1990 to 1999. Considering the size of the force and that fact that crime fell in that period, it's clear that; well, it's clear that it's still dangerous the be a police officer, but that the dangers are a little over blown also. Nothing however excuses the "rude":http://www.boingboing.net/2007/01/09/atlanta_cops_thrown_.html behavior that is becoming more and more common among American police. Also, there seems to have been a rise in the shoot first attitude among police, particularly in certain cities; despite falling crime rates.

As for armor-piercing bullets, it's a complete myth. No officer has ever been killed by a bullet piercing his body "armor.":http://www.guncite.com/gun_control_gcgvcopk.html

PS - if you were being sarcastic, sorry
Durf
January 19, 2007
3:00 am
I've never been questioned in regard to a crime, except for the garden-variety "do you really own that bike you're on" sort of stuff. That happens quite a lot, though. Might be because I live in a neighborhood with three or four universities, and students aren't always respectful of property law when it comes to borrowing some wheels for that drunken ride back to the dorm; but I'll be the one pulled over for that check while the Japanese kids riding two to a bike, with no light, go sailing by.

I agree that the police here are almost always polite, and very helpful when you're the one heading to the koban to report or turn in a lost item, or to ask for directions.

A quick news search turned up this story, but the date seems to be different from what the cop was talking about.
Curzon
January 19, 2007
5:19 am
Sonagi: Actually, I think the general rudeness of cops in the US is more to do with power, arrogance, and the culture of the institution. I fully support the police and always cooperate with officers to the fullest extent reasonable in any encounter. Japanese police make it very easy; the police in the general area of New York make it tough.

Elambend: I think I would greatly enjoy a discussion/debate with you about the history and development of constitutional law protections under the fourth and fifth amendments, its effects on law enforcement, rights, crime, and all the rest.
Mutantfrog
January 19, 2007
5:29 am
Japanese cops may generally be polite, but I have heard plenty of stories where they simply refuse to help, or even file a report, for things that they consider "personal problems." Even worse, I have also heard stories of cops refusing to file a report for sexual assault, because they would prefer to keep the story quiet and not harm the girl's reputation.

I have also recently seen a rash of police being extremely rude with traffic enforcement in downtown Kyoto, yelling out of their loudspeaker as they drive past, and roving gangs of a half dozen cops just marching up and down the street, in a way that makes me think their goal is to be so conspicuous that any criminal's nearby have plenty of warning to stop whatever they are doing and move on before the cops actually have to do any work.

And then there was of course that infamous video of the cop running away from last year or the year before.

Oh, and lest I forget the many times I have seen cops actually sleeping inside their koban...

Basically what I am saying is that Japanese cops are more polite in a very superficial way, but when it comes to something important they can be equally, if not more, assholish than American cops.
mc_masterchef
January 19, 2007
5:56 am
As mentioned above, your rights are pretty thin, but a summary of the basics can be found here. A wallet-clipping copy version of the relevant laws is here.
jon
January 19, 2007
2:25 pm
I can't speak with any authority for police in major cities outside of New York, but I have found the New York cops to be like their civilian bretheren in the city. Yeah, they can be rude and brusque, but if you come to them with a problem, they will usually at the very least offer proper advice.
As for the citizens they suspect of a crime, they can be pretty tough, especially if you happen to have a darker skin color.
The police that I have had problems with are the local, suburban and small town police. In the town I grew up in, they were quite often the bullies and a**holes of the local high school. They prove the law enforcement corollary to Kissinger's statements about academia and squabbles. They are such hard asses because the stakes are relatively low.
subadei
January 19, 2007
9:29 pm
I found the police in Japan to be an excellent source for directions. That's the extent of my dealings with them, so I'm hardly qualified to judge.
As for US cops Sonagi has a point. The threat a Japanese policeman faces when compared with that faced by an American officer (DC, LA, Detroit, Atlanta, atc.) aren't exactly comparable.

Further I'd say the arrogance of US police is trained into them. By presenting an assertive (if rude) and overbearing attitude the "subject" is immediately on the defensive. I think it's a technique of establishing control of a situation. I've found that even the most overbearing, aggressive cop warms up a bit as he establishes the fact that his interaction with me is routine and won't develope into a situation in which I flee or, worse yet, produce a weapon.
Sonagi
January 19, 2007
9:46 pm
@Elambend,

I wasn't being sarcastic, but I was exaggerating. You and Curzon make valid points that there is a culture of arrogance amongst some US police departments. I wonder, though, if some of that attitude comes from the fact that US law enforcement does have a very dangerous job.
Ken
January 20, 2007
2:08 am
This month's US embassy newsletter included a warning to foreign residents in Japan. The National Police Agency contacted the US embassy and told them that they would be doing random checks of foreigners for identification, so they should make sure to carry them. So, expect more...
Joe
January 20, 2007
3:31 am
The obsession with ID checks is weird. Why does it matter? Are they just looking for visa overstayers? The way the population bulge is moving, the authorities should be grateful that people are overstaying their visas.
Kurt9
January 20, 2007
10:10 pm
Japan has a problem with foreigners coming in on tourist visas and then just remaining. Crime is slowly increasing and much of it is assummed to be caused by forigners (mostly from 3rd world countries) living illegally in Japan. They starting making a big fuss out of this in the mid 90's and it has been growing ever sense.

In rural areas, where foreigners are uncommon, it is not unusual for the cops from the local Koban to stop by and visit a newly arriving foreigner for a cup of coffee. They are very polite about it but just want to know who you are. This is typical Japanese zenophobia.
Mutantfrog
January 23, 2007
7:00 am
For an example of quality Japanese policework-
http://www.asahi.com/english/Herald-asahi/TKY200701220113.html
A man had been jailed for over two years on rape charges purely on the basis of his extracted confession, despite there being no physical evidence.
The man at first denied the allegations, but confessed on the third day of questioning, police said.

No physical evidence supported the arrest.

Meanwhile, last November, Otsu confessed to the two crimes. Shoe prints at the crime scene backed the man's innocence claim because Otsu's shoes match the prints, which were larger than the man's shoe size, police said.

"We did not question (the discrepancy in) the size of the shoe prints at the time," said Tsutomu Kobayashi, chief of criminal investigations at the prefectural police department. "The man's arrest was not based on objective evidence and our investigation made no effort to verify the facts."

Also, a record of a telephone call made by the man from his home around the time one crime was being committed appeared to make it impossible for him to have been the perpetrator.