Talk:Law enforcement in Japan

Opening neutrality
The opening(summary paragraph) seems to be rather boastful of the japanese police services; I am nominating it to be reviewed for POV. --Eyaw Nayr 21:38, 16 May 2007 (UTC)
 * Cleaned up and neutered, Removed the afronting tag, sheesh!--Degen Earthfast (talk) 04:40, 20 September 2009 (UTC)

assessment
More references and pictures to get a B class, I feel.--SGGH 15:02, 2 November 2006 (UTC)

In the section of "special police", it says "railroad police of Japan Railways Group". I don't think it is correct. Until 1987,there had been railroad police of "Japan National Railways". In 1987, "Japan Naitonal Railway" was privaterized to "Japan Railways Group"(private companies). In Japan,private companies are not allowed to have police,so now railroad polices are run by regular police officers. There are some articles in Japanese wikipedia to support this:鉄道警察隊,鉄道公安職員

And also,there is another special officer which this article doesn't mention. It is drug inspectors of "Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare". They fight against illegal drugs.

As I cannot use English well,so would someone update this article,please? --220.212.40.213 17:56, 15 March 2006 (UTC)

I found more information that could be included in the new future. Someone should get info regarding the Prime Minister's Residence Official Guard Unit, the NPA's NBC Terror Response Squad (As least from what I've seen it translated) and the Narita Airport Guard. I just recently found these out. 70.68.55.148 00:58, 16 March 2007 (UTC)

Weapons
Do Japanese cops (beat cops, those in the koban, etc) carry firearms? LordAmeth 00:49, 8 July 2007 (UTC)

No, not everyone, only in Special Units like the Crime Investigation Unit and so on, and of course the SWAT. The normal Police only uses non deadly Weapons and Martial Arts like TMP Aikido.


 * They only use New Nambu revolvers. Detectives and the SAT and other special police units use pistols. Ominae 00:16, 21 August 2007 (UTC)

Not true, all Japanese police are trained and carry a firearm, normally a small revolver. I met a detective whilst working over there with the police who used a sig. Most detectives carry semi autos, but the average beat cop carries a revolver. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 82.18.227.125 (talk) 23:15, 16 May 2008 (UTC)


 * Normally they don't carry weapons... If they do need any weapons they can be equip. I have seen a Riot Shield and Nightsticks in a Koban. They was in plain view and ready to be picked up by a Officer to rush to a area.


 * Rasseru 20:22 13 June 2008 (GMT -4 hours) —Preceding comment was added at 00:22, 14 June 2008 (UTC)


 * When I was in the army and was stationed at Camp Zama, Kanagawa Prefecture, all the Japanese police I saw carried .38cal revolvers as well as truncheons. The movie Black Rain, filmed in Osaka Prefecture, also depicts the Japanese as armed.--Degen Earthfast (talk) 17:37, 3 October 2009 (UTC)


 * It was a Movie... If we think everything in a movie is real? Then we be wrong half the time. I seen police in prefectures not carrying weapon. More likely if they are carrying a firearm? Something going on in their events that they might need them.
 * Rasseru (talk) 07:04, 4 October 2009 (UTC)

In his book, The Japanese Police Establishment, Ralph J. Rinalducci states that male Japanes police officers were generally armed in accordance with the duties that they performed. They were issued either New Nambu or Smith and Wesson .38caliber revolvers. Granted the first edition was in 1972 then1974, so it is kinda dated, however, when I was in Toyko, Japan, all the Police that I observed on the streets were wearing holsters with lanyards attached to something in the holsters which I believe to be pistols. All the traffic police were definitely armed.--71.246.30.208 (talk) 16:30, 16 December 2009 (UTC)


 * I propose that there be a section devoted to this in the actual article.  From what I read it seams not all carry side arms, but many may.   It seems more likely that those working closer to military infrastructure would carry more often than those walking a beat in a peaceful neighborhood.   I think good sources should be gathered (law and or police testimonies)and a section added.

TJ 70.123.100.18 (talk) 00:18, 2 December 2012 (UTC)
 * Added in Equipment section. Ghostofnemo (talk) 02:53, 12 May 2016 (UTC)

Foreign community relations
I changed this sentence:

Very few foreign residents cannot claim they were not stopped without reason by a Japanese police officer...

to:

Many foreign residents claim to have been stopped without reason by a Japanese police officer...

I'm guessing that's what comes out of it when you cancel out all those negations. Without a reference the whole thing seems very anecdotal, though. "Many claim" is no kind of source. I'm thinking the whole section should probably be removed. Willi5willi5 (talk) 08:07, 9 June 2008 (UTC)
 * No it's not anecdotal it happens a lot. In my case I was stopped by the police three times while driving (when I was working in Niigata-ken). On one of these occasions tweedle dum and tweedle dee even managed to issue me with a 45000Y ticket on a trumped up driving violation that I passed a red stop signal, er that was behind me?! Another time I got stopped for riding my bike on road. The cop wanted to know if it was my bike as he thought I had stolen it. It wasn't but the checks had to be done. Yet j-kids ride their bikes on highways, sidewalks, stairs, crosswalks etc without hindrance.


 * On another occasion four squad cars with about 7/8 officers came to my friends apartment about 10.30pm at night. They marched in and told (in pretty short japanese) that all the 'gaijin' should go to bed IMA!! When my friend protested he was shouted at and threatened with a night at the koban. We were led to believe that it was due to a complaint about noise (the anti-social behaviour of sitting at home drinking a few cans of Chūhai with friends while watching DVDs), the cops then sat outside the property till the lights were turned off. Ironically within the hour (so now after 11.30pm) a bunch of drunk j-kids coming back from the itsukaija were kicking over bins and making a hell of racket down the street, but no cops then.


 * And thirdly my mate Charlie, a great lad from NJ, had been out all night in the city and was walking back to the railway station to get the first train home when a police car halted at the bottom of the block. Next thing he heard was running and the call of 'sutoppu' he looked back but kept walking (he had only just left the club) assuming they were interested in someone else. When the cops got level one had his gun out!! He was then put against a wall while they carried out a 'gaijin' card check. The reason? Apparently he looked like someone that had been reported acting suspiciously in the area. Fair enough, many of you law'n order buffs would say, you have to check IDs. Yeah, well the mitigating fact is Charlie was about 6ft5in; a fair-haired basketball player. Two distinct qualities that made him stand out from the crowd so arguably the police had got their man. However they hadn't and after an hour of sitting in a police car he was let go.

Incident 2

Treatment of foreigners by Japanese Police (Tokyo) needs study. Following a minor driving infraction the police delayed a co-operative foreign driver for over an hour while Japanese driver's committing the same infraction were processed within minutes. The officer involved seemed to be taking pleasure bullying the caucasian. I question this officer's suitability for a modern police force. If there are others with similar attitudes the police force must admit they have a real problem on their hands. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 66.183.189.121 (talk) 21:27, 10 May 2009 (UTC)


 * Personally, these maybe just anecdotes but they happened. Besides it did help me, getting this treatment, because it made me clearly understand the problems faced by immigrants as I had been one myself.


 * this is a very useful first hand account of the Japanese Police system
 * http://www.stippy.com/japan-life/gaijin-in-a-japanese-prison-10/
 * an Australian expat explains what happened when he refused to pay a financial settlement to a taxi driver who had set him up.
 * it makes cold reading for those who unwittingly enter the Japanese justice system!


 * That link is dead. Anyway, the section suggests a pattern of discrimination of foreigners. There might be such a pattern, but it's not supported by these stories. Four people does not constitute 'many', and even if it did this would be original research.
 * Willi5willi5 (talk) 19:29, 12 December 2008 (UTC)

The Police Cars
I removed the topic that was added to the article by 80.57.84.209. I removed the topic and place it in a new area as Unknown Sources. Then removed that to because it is unknown fact and seem like gossip.
 * "Around 17,000 of them can´t go faster than 130 M/pH (195 KM/pH. the JAPD (Japanese police department) claimed that they would introduce new police cars in 2007, but there was a delay of at least 2 years because of the economic crisis. Until now the most of the police cars that cant go that fast are in the middle of the greater city´s or outside the big cities. The JAPD sad that there is no threat because the police cars are not in areas where people have the chance to drive fast. The story of the Japanese police cars came back in the movie Tokyo Drift in 2005, although there are a couple of mistakes, because the actors drive on the highway of Tokyo (alone) where drive the fastest police cars in the world with over 185 M/pH (280 KM/pH)"

I would remove this data from article... But it brings up a good topics that I have wonder about.
 * 1) Is this a statement that may came from the Tokyo Police, National Police, or a News Interview?
 * 2) What are the speeds of the highway police cars? By type of car and max speed limit.
 * 3) Will Japanese Police will not chase if the subject cars that are faster than their car?
 * 4) Do they really own the fastest police cars in the world?
 * 5) Did the police have a economic crisis?
 * 6) How are these units are currently placed?

I hope some can look into this?
 * Rasseru (talk) 22:44, 24 September 2009 (UTC)

External links modified
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 * Added archive https://web.archive.org/web/20091006202115/http://www.keishicho.metro.tokyo.jp/foreign/submenu.htm to http://www.keishicho.metro.tokyo.jp/foreign/submenu.htm

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External links modified
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Proper Ranks
Not going to name how I got the proper naming of ranks, I'd like to share my insight on how the NPA (Keisatsucho) is officially structured:
 * Junsa (Officer)
 * Junsacho (Senior Officer)
 * Junsabuncho (Police Sergeant)
 * Keibuho (Assistant Inspector)
 * Keibu (Inspector)
 * Keishi (Superintendent)
 * Keishisei (Senior Superintendent-this was the correct name of Keishisei)
 * Keishicho (Chief Superintendent-this was the correct name of Keishicho)
 * Keishikan (SUPERINTENDENT SUPERVISOR-this is actually the accepted title of Keishikan in Japan, A Superintendent Supervisor is ranked above a Chief Superintendent, but below a Keishisoukan (Superintendent General) in Keisatsucho lingo).
 * Keishisoukan - I agree since it's the correct name (Superintendent General)

2601:243:500:4E90:7513:EE68:37C2:185D (talk) 19:56, 18 September 2021 (UTC)


 * Although I think your translation does a good job of conveying the nuances of the kanji, I believe that as long as there is an official translation published by the Japanese police, it should be used.--Panda 51 (talk) 23:54, 18 September 2021 (UTC)