PREFACE
The ratio of elderly aged 65 or older to the total population of Japan has been rapidly increasing and Japan is now approaching being an “unprecedented aged society” that no other country has ever experienced before where one in every five people is elderly, which has also affected Japan's crime trends in a variety of ways.
Recent trends in the number of cases reported for penal code offenses is that, although still at a high level, it did decrease for five consecutive years after reaching a peak in 2002. Conversely however, crimes being committed by elderly have continued to increase, with the ratio of elderly to the total persons cleared rising, and with the ratio of elderly to total persons imprisoned or under probation/parole supervision also rising. In addition, the rate of increase in the ratio of elderly offenders in each stage of criminal justice is significantly higher than the rate of increase in the ratio of elderly to total population. Taking into consideration these circumstances, this edition of the White Paper on Crime outlines crime trends and the treatment of offenders mainly in 2007 and features the “Circumstances and Attributes of Elderly Offenders”.
The Research and Training Institute of the Ministry of Justice featured “The Circumstances and Attributes of Repeat Offenders and Countermeasures to Recidivism” in the 2007 edition of the White Paper on Crime, with the focus on the issues of repeat offenders and the characteristics of elderly offenders also having been discussed in part of that issue. In this edition of the White Paper on Crime, further researches have been conducted through detailed analysis of statistics and empirical research in order to clarify any issues with the circumstances and attributes of elderly offenders. As the special research, a survey on convicted elderly offenders was conducted to verify and consider their circumstances and attributes, background, and other factors. In addition, the featured article describes institutional and community-based treatment for elderly offenders and gives an overview of the trends with elderly offenders and the justice system regarding elderly offenders in other countries to contribute to future discussions.
As aging is expected to progress very rapidly in Japan, elderly persons will need to play key roles in realizing an affluent society, and the prevention of crimes committed by elderly and the rehabilitation of elderly offenders are part of the most important issues in criminal policies in Japan. Giving the opportunity for reform within the frame of criminal justice, however, is merely a start in the process of rehabilitating elderly offenders. They must be fully rehabilitated through making continuous efforts with support by people around them after returning to their families and local communities. Gaining understanding and assistance from their families, local communities, and general public is very important, as well as getting relevant agencies/institutions to provide support in cooperation.
It is our hope that this White Paper on Crime will deepen people's understanding of elderly offenders and be utilized as an informative reference in discussion/research of possible measures. We also hope that it will be a helpful guide for people in considering how to cope with the issues of elderly offenders as the issues pertinent to themselves, while promoting various measures for preventing crimes committed by elderly in local communities and facilitating their rehabilitation.
Lastly, we wish to express our sincere gratitude to the General Secretariat of the Supreme Court of Japan, the Cabinet Office, National Police Agency, Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology, Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare, Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport, and other relevant agencies for their enormous cooperation in compiling this White Paper.
November, 2008
Yoshinobu Onuki
President
Research and Training Institute
Ministry of Justice
Japan