259: Phoenix Wright's Objection!

[Coop83]

These miscarriages of justice are what you expect in countries that doesn't conform to popular modern thinking. I don't really like to name names here, but military dictatorships and countries run by other systems of government than democracy would seem to be candidates here. I wouldn't have expected this to have happened in Japan, in all honesty.

I love the way that the video games industry is using this game to point out a thorny issue, that most western people are completely oblivious to - it is a very cunning ploy and a great use of symbolism. Does it mean that anything will happen to improve the lives of those currently tangled in the judicial system at present? Probably not, but they do need major reforms to a very corrupt system of legal procedure that seems too over burdened to continue in any sort of effective manner.

 

[Yennick]

...

 

[Brainstrain]

Never knew this about Japan. It's very interesting and will influence my vacation choices.
I agree with Yennick, absolutely. If you can't be proven a criminal, then you aren't a criminal. Presumed innocence is an important characteristic in a free state. If you're presumed guilty, it's very hard to question disappearances. With presumed innocence, you can have things like Habeaus Corpus.

If someone may be guilty, well, let them get caught. It encourages good police work to know that you have to PROVE wrongdoing.

 

[Fleetfiend]

Holy cow. I had no idea how messed up the Japanese court system was.

I have ten times more respect for Phoenix Wright now. And that's saying a lot!

 

[1337mokro]

I knew about the Japanese Legal system but what I found weird was the introduction of a Jury being so hammered on.

We don't have Juries here and I'm happy for it, the thing we have though is a more even-handed law system, it takes ages to get anything as is the case everywhere. But prosecutors aren't as highly regarded and have no such control over the police as in Japan.

9/10 times a jury member is an unwilling participant and undereducated on the subject of crime. Go watch 12 angry men to show you just how divided a single jury can be about the subject because of personal reasons.

Heck go see it just cause it's a great movie.

Point is that I don't trust juries. They are often highly influence by rumours because after all they are just common citizens. In fact in Belgium during 2 high stake cases traditional juries were abolished and the law about how juries were selected was amended because of the cases in question being so widely speculated on by the public and media.

Instead we have a judge make a decision or in higher (non-civil/capital/corporate law) cases there are multiple judges to make a decision.

I much prefer this over Beer Cap Joe deciding my fate according to the article he read in the fucking tabloids.

 

[TheDharmaFox]

Interesting read, I had to stop myself and listen to the PW soundtrack, mainly Announce the Truth!