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I recently started playing it on the Switch, and my first thought was that I hope the Japanese court system isn't really like this. It makes me appreciate the i

I recently started playing it on the Switch, and my first thought was that I hope the Japanese court system isn't really like this. It makes me appreciate the idea of "innocent until proven guilty" in the US. Ace Attorney feels much more "I don't like you, so I'm going to assume you're guilty unless you have absolute proof that you're not".

TheDong 6y ago
Justice systems are complicated. From what I've read, it's true that the japanese court system indeed gives prosecutors more leeway and the trial is more of a formality. The conviction rate of 99% (vs 70-95% in the us, depending how you count) speaks to this. However, that's not all there is to it. You're still innocent until proven guilty in Japan. There's also probably more in common with the japanese justice system and the US system than different. In practice, the majority of cases in both don't go to trial. In japan, the prosecution will just not prosecute any case they don't think they'll win (and have broad leeway to do so). This results in a 99% conviction rate because, well, there's no reason they can't just drop any case without rock solid evidence. Even in cases where they're confident the suspect is guilty, but they don't think they have enough evidence, they may opt to just drop the case. In the US, similarly, most cases don't go to trial. The vast majority are also ended under prosecutor discretion, via plea bargains. Both in the US and Japan, most cases skip the proper court system due to the prosecution having power to do so. It's just in Japan, the prosecution also has power to drop the case, while in the US the prosecution can only skip the courts if they get a plea deal, but not if the suspect keeps pleading not-guilty. Japan has laws requiring evidence in addition to a confession due to understanding that police sometimes force confessions (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Criminal_justice_system_of_Japan#Confession_in_Japanese_criminal_investigation https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Criminal_justice_system_of_Jap...) In america it's routine for people to be convicted on nothing other than a suspect agreeing to a plea deal even though they didn't do it. "You can get 1 year in jail and get back to your family if you take the plea, or you can risk 30 years in jail if you keep saying not-guilty" isn't at all unusual in the US system, especially since a cop's word is often enough for a guilty sentence. I'd be happy to be wrong on any of he above details if anyone has separate experience, understanding, or sources. All that being said, I'd much much rather be arrested in Japan than in the US.

TheDong 6y ago

Justice systems are complicated. From what I've read, it's true that the japanese court system indeed gives prosecutors more leeway and the trial is more of a formality. The conviction rate of 99% (vs 70-95% in the us, depending how you count) speaks to this. However, that's not all there is to it. You're still innocent until proven guilty in Japan. There's also probably more in common with the japanese justice system and the US system than different. In practice, the majority of cases in both don't go to trial. In japan, the prosecution will just not prosecute any case they don't think they'll win (and have broad leeway to do so). This results in a 99% conviction rate because, well, there's no reason they can't just drop any case without rock solid evidence. Even in cases where they're confident the suspect is guilty, but they don't think they have enough evidence, they may opt to just drop the case. In the US, similarly, most cases don't go to trial. The vast majority are also ended under prosecutor discretion, via plea bargains. Both in the US and Japan, most cases skip the proper court system due to the prosecution having power to do so. It's just in Japan, the prosecution also has power to drop the case, while in the US the prosecution can only skip the courts if they get a plea deal, but not if the suspect keeps pleading not-guilty. Japan has laws requiring evidence in addition to a confession due to understanding that police sometimes force confessions (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Criminal_justice_system_of_Japan#Confession_in_Japanese_criminal_investigation https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Criminal_justice_system_of_Jap...) In america it's routine for people to be convicted on nothing other than a suspect agreeing to a plea deal even though they didn't do it. "You can get 1 year in jail and get back to your family if you take the plea, or you can risk 30 years in jail if you keep saying not-guilty" isn't at all unusual in the US system, especially since a cop's word is often enough for a guilty sentence. I'd be happy to be wrong on any of he above details if anyone has separate experience, understanding, or sources. All that being said, I'd much much rather be arrested in Japan than in the US.