Japanese police likely to delete personal data of man found not guilty in assault case

The National Police Agency (NPA) is expected to delete information about a Nagoya man who was found not guilty in an assault case from its database, following a court order.

NPA Commissioner General Yasuhiro Tsuyuki announced that the agency does not intend to appeal the Supreme Court's recent decision. In a regular press conference on September 12, he stated, “We have found no reason to challenge the conclusion that the information should be deleted.”

The plaintiff is 68-year-old Yasumasa Okuda, a pharmacist from Nagoya who was arrested and charged for allegedly assaulting the construction manager of a residential complex during a protest against the project in 2016. He was later acquitted based on surveillance camera footage and other evidence, and the verdict became final.

Since his acquittal was upheld, a district court ordered the deletion of Okuda's DNA type and other information, and the Nagoya High Court upheld that decision on August 30. The high court also pointed out that “legislative measures are needed” to respond that data management was carried out in accordance with the National Public Security Commission's regulations and the NPA's guidelines.

Tsuyuki noted, “The need for a law should ultimately be decided by the legislature,” adding that there are “a considerable number of court cases that have been decided based on the current system, and the courts are also divided on the issue.” He continued, “We do not believe that the creation of a law is immediately necessary.”

According to the NPA, there have been 20 court cases involving the deletion of data such as DNA types, fingerprints and facial photographs, including the recent Nagoya case. Of these, the national government has won all 15 cases whose rulings are final, and if the government loses in the Nagoya case, it would be the first time. The deadline for the government to appeal is Sept. 13, and once the ruling is final, the NPA will delete Okuda's data “immediately,” it said.

Lawyer Bujiro Kunita, the head of the plaintiff's legal team, said in an interview, “We had believed the government would appeal 100%.” ​​Since Okuda hopes to enshrine the system in law, he reportedly said he had “mixed feelings” about the NPA's decision. Kunita said the team will decide on Sept. 13 whether to appeal.

(Japanese original by Masakatsu Yamasaki, Tokyo Metropolitan News Department; and Hiroko Michishita, Nagoya News Department)