Jury Trials Return to Japan- What's Good for Guantanamo...

After half a century of trials by judges only, Japan has returned to a (kind of) jury trial system. In the new format, three judges will be joined by six lay-persons to decide the fate of Japanese defendants. While juries will only be used in certain cases, there is some concern among prosecutors that changing the system might compromise the current 99% conviction rate in Japanese courts. Forced confessions at the hands of police while refusing suspects access to defense lawyers will continue unimpeded, however.