The second hearing was held on Wednesday, July 23, 2024 at 2:00 p.m. in Courtroom 103 of the Tokyo District Court.

Despite it being the second hearing date, many people lined up to win tickets, exceeding the capacity of the venue. Thank you very much.
At the hearing, the first step was to review the written statements of both parties.

During the hearing period, the plaintiff submitted Preparatory Document 1 dated April 30 and Preparatory Document 2 dated May 29 , which specify the contents of the police questioning, as well as a request for clarification requesting that defendants Tokyo and Aichi Prefecture disclose documents and other materials in their possession and confirm the facts and circumstances regarding Exhibit 4.

Each of the defendants submitted a preparatory brief (1) within the hearing period ( Defendant State , Defendant Tokyo , Defendant Aichi Prefecture ).

In addition, as evidence for its claims, the defendant State submitted Exhibits A1 to A4 , and the defendant Tokyo submitted Exhibits B1 to B11 (Aichi Prefecture did not submit any evidence).

Afterwards, the head of the defense team, Taniguchi, verbally requested confirmation of two major points.

First, in their preparatory brief 1, defendants Tokyo and Aichi Prefecture, in response to the plaintiff's lawsuit for confirmation of illegality, made an argument that took it for granted that conducting routine search and questioning based on race, etc. is illegal. Therefore, we sought confirmation that they would not dispute the substantive illegality (the merits) in the lawsuit for confirmation of illegality.

Secondly, as we had asserted in our petition for clarification, we elaborated and explained that we would like to request disclosure of documents and records in order to clarify the issues at issue.

Regarding the second point, the court urged the defendants to consider the matter, and they responded that they would consider the matter, including whether it was necessary, and disclose it by the next hearing.

The plaintiff's counsel expressed the opinion that, if possible, it would be desirable to first make a list of the documents in hand and then clearly state the need for disclosure, and the defendants responded that they would meet in person to include that list as well.

Regarding the first point, there was a comment that it seemed to the court that if the lawsuit was dismissed based on the argument regarding the prerequisites for proceedings, then there would be no need to argue the merits of the lawsuit. Taniguchi, the head of the defense team, responded that this would normally be the structure, but in this case, the argument regarding the prerequisites for proceedings that should be dismissed was based on the premise that police questioning based on race, etc. is illegal, and therefore it seems that the intention is not to dispute the merits of the lawsuit in substance, and so he requested an clarification.

In response to this, the presiding judge urged the defendants to consider the matter before the next hearing.

Finally, the court asked the plaintiffs to refute the defendant's claim of mutual guarantees by the next hearing, and the plaintiffs agreed. Mutual guarantees are a system stipulated in Article 6 of the State Compensation Law, which requires that in order for a plaintiff of foreign nationality to seek state compensation, there must be a system in place in the foreign country where Japanese nationals can seek compensation from the national or local government. In this case, we plan to investigate the legal systems of the respective countries of Shelton and Matthew's nationality and make our case by the next hearing.

The next hearing will be held on Thursday, September 19th from 3pm in Courtroom 419 (the courtroom will be smaller as the main focus for the next hearing will be on procedural adjustments). We hope that many of you will attend.

Everyone

We would like to once again express our gratitude to all those who attended the last hearing.

Now, the second hearing is approaching, starting at 2pm on the 23rd of next week.

The other day, the court announced that this date was subject to a lottery.

 
https://www.courts.go.jp/app/botyokoufu_jp/detail?id=9766&list_id=15,18,19,20,21,22,23,24,25

Please note that you must collect your lottery ticket at the designated location on the first floor of the Tokyo District Court by 1:30 pm on the day of the event.

We are looking forward to seeing many of you there.

The first hearing was held on Monday, April 15th from 2:00 p.m. in Courtroom 103 of the Tokyo District Court.

More than 140 people lined up for the lottery to win spectator tickets, which were limited to 75 seats.
At the hearing, the head of the legal team, Taniguchi, gave an oral statement of the contents of the complaint. Using slides, he explained how frequent police questioning is a violation of the law, and how abusive police questioning of foreigners is practiced in Japan.

Plaintiffs Zane and Shelton then spoke powerfully in their own words about how being stopped and searched has hurt and upset them personally over the years.

After the hearing, a report session was held at the neighboring Bar Association building. On stage, Zain said, "I had some doubts, but I decided to become a plaintiff in the lawsuit, prepared to shoulder the hopes of many people. As the number of people who were born and raised in Japan from a young age, like me, increases, I want to change society so that they do not have to suffer the same troubles."

The next hearing will be on Tuesday, July 23rd from 14:00 in Courtroom 103. We hope that many of you will attend.

⳹ Please come and observe! ⳼

It has been decided that the first oral argument hearing in the " Lawsuit to End Racially Discriminatory Police Questioning " will take place tomorrow, Monday, April 15th .

This special trial session will take place in the Tokyo District Court's Main Courtroom, which can accommodate over 100 people, and will feature statements (court speeches) by the plaintiffs and their defense teams.
We invite everyone to attend the memorable first hearing of what may well go down in history.
Let's support the plaintiffs' courage together!!

After the hearing, there will also be a report session at the Bar Association building next to the District Court for approximately one hour starting at around 3:00 p.m.
There will be an explanation of the lawsuit by the legal team, a message from the plaintiffs, and time for questions and answers.

▶ First oral argument hearing for the "Stop Racist Police Stopping!" Lawsuit Date and time: Monday, April 15th, from 2pm (approximately 30 minutes)
Venue: Tokyo District Court No. 103 Grand Bench

Schedule:
Distribution of numbered tickets until 13:40 (If there are many applicants, a lottery will be held at 13:40)
14:00-14:30 First oral argument session at Tokyo District Court, Courtroom No. 103

▶Post-trial report session This will be held after the trial ends at 3pm in the Cleo Auditorium on the second floor of the Bar Association Building. Staff will guide you through the session after the hearing.

▶About the lawsuit

Three plaintiffs, who have been repeatedly subjected to racist police questioning, are suing the national government and Tokyo and Aichi prefectures, which have jurisdiction over the police, claiming that the current practice of racist police questioning violates the Constitution, international treaties, etc.
The press conference announcing the lawsuit on January 29th attracted so much attention that the news was published in over 100 media outlets in approximately 25 countries.

We sincerely thank you for your support in the Lawsuit to End Racially Discriminatory Police Questioning!

This week, on January 29th (Monday), we filed the lawsuit at the Tokyo District Court.

To our delight, the news has been featured in over 30 media outlets nationally and internationally, including NHK, Asahi Shimbun, Reuters, BBC, and more! We have received numerous additional interview requests, garnering attention beyond our expectations.

This lawsuit involves three plaintiffs who have repeatedly experienced racially discriminatory police questioning. They argue that the current police practice violates the constitution, international treaties, and various other legal standards. The defendants include the Japanese government, as well as the Tokyo Metropolitan Government and Aichi Prefecture, which oversee the prefectural police departments.

One of the plaintiffs has undergone over 70 unwarranted police questioning incidents since he moved to Japan. As a result, he has resorted to a lifestyle of seclusion in his house, and he also gradually lost his smile. The plaintiffs have decided to speak out not only for themselves but also for those suffering from racial profiling including the children of foreign origins who will shape the future of society.

In a country already inhabited by a diverse population, it is crucial for the development of Japanese society to ensure that everyone can authentically be themselves without being targeted for unfair treatment. Urgent rule changes are needed, and we hope that this lawsuit will promote a nationwide discussion on racial profiling, bringing about changes in police practices.

We sincerely ask for your continued support.

＝＝＝＼Tomorrow Evening!／ Event Informartion ＝＝＝

PolitasTV “What is the Lawsuit to End Racially Discriminatory Police Questioning?” (Tentative)

Date & Time: February 1st (Thursday) 7pm-8pm

Guests: Motoki Taniguchi (Attorney), Michiko Kameishi (Attorney), Matthew (a plaintiff), Daisuke Tsuda (MC)

Anyone can watch the show for free: PolitasTV (YouTube)

＝＝＝＼Considerable Media Attention!／ Media Coverage ＝＝＝

•  The Associated Press, “A group of Japanese citizens launches a lawsuit against the police to stop alleged ‘racial profiling’”, 2024.1.29

• Reuters, “Foreign-born residents file suit in Japan over alleged racial profiling”, 2024.1.29

• The Japan Times, “Lawsuit filed in Tokyo over alleged racial profiling by police”, 2024.1.29

• Time, “Japan Police Accused of Racial Profiling”, 2024.1.30

• BBC, “Japan: Foreign-born residents sue government for alleged racial profiling”, 2024.1.30

  
  

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#STOPRacialProfiling

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