A Japanese court awarded $1.4 million to Iwao Hakamada, who spent 44 years on death row after being wrongfully convicted of murder in 1966. His defense argued that police coerced a confession and manufactured evidence, leading to a retrial that ultimately acquitted him in 2020. The compensation is likely the largest in Japan's history for a criminal case, calculated at about $83 for each day of his detention. Hakamada's long struggle highlights systemic issues in Japan's legal system regarding wrongful convictions and police conduct during interrogations.
The court's decision emphasizes the grave injustice faced by Iwao Hakamada, who endured an extraordinary 44 years on death row before being exonerated.
Mr. Hakamada consistently maintained that his confession was coerced, recounting the extreme torture endured during his 20-day police interrogation.
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