Japan Awards Record $1.4 Million to Longest-Serving Death Row Inmate

Iwao Hakamada, exonerated after nearly 50 years on death row, receives historic compensation as calls for legal reform grow.

Iwao Hakamada, 89, spent 46 years in detention, most of it on death row, after a wrongful conviction for a 1966 quadruple murder.
The Shizuoka District Court awarded him $1.4 million in compensation, the largest criminal compensation in Japan's history.
Hakamada's conviction was overturned in 2024 after the court found police had tampered with evidence and coerced his confession.
Decades of solitary confinement and the constant threat of execution severely impacted Hakamada's mental health, described by his lawyers as 'living in a world of fantasy.'
His case highlights systemic flaws in Japan's justice system, including coerced confessions and a 99% conviction rate, renewing debates over capital punishment and legal reforms.