Emerged from Social Pathology

The biggest issue is not about why he committed that mass murder, but about whether he had a normal mentality or not. In the opening trial in Kyoto Regional Court on the arson murder at a studio of Kyoto Animation, or Kyoani, in 2019, the defendant Shinji Aoba admitted that the incident was caused by him, but it had been “too much.” But, his lawyer argued that he had been in a condition of mental exhaustion at the time and pleaded not guilty. One may find a kind of pathology in Japanese society in the background of the incident.

According to the indictment, Aoba appeared at the entrance of the First studio of Kyoani around 10:30 of July 18^th, 2019, dumped a bucket of gasoline to a staff on the first floor and burnt the three-story building down. Among 70 staffs in the building, 36 was dead, 32 was injured. Meantime, Aoba fatally burnt himself. Now he is getting as better with medical treatment as he could appear to the court. Aoba testified that the arson was made by him. “I did not think,” said Aoba, “that so many people were killed, but I could find no way at the time.”

 

The prosecutors argued that Aoba had full responsibility on it. Aoba submitted his novel to a contest sponsored by Kyoani, which did not win any prize. After that, he found a product of Kyoani which resembled his story, and believed that his work was plagiarized. He thought all the Kyoani staffs were responsible for that. The prosecutors analyzed that Aoba had proud, skeptical and aggressive personalities.

 

Aoba actually had a history of unhappy life. Aoba’s parents divorced when he was nine and he was raised with domestic violence of his father. After graduating high-school, he worked in convenience stores for eight years, only resulted in quitting with ill relationship with other staffs. He plotted a mass murder in Omiya Station, Saitama, one month before Kyoani arson, but gave it up before taking action.

 

Aoba’s lawyer defended him that he had a delusive disorder and could not distinguish wrong from right. For him, the arson was a counter measure against “a person in the dark side” who had been harassing him cooperating with Kyoani. Such delusive stories made the trial focus on defendant’s capability of responsibility.

 

Victims’ families were regretful about the defendant’s testimony, not hearing any apology from Aoba. Considering those families’ difficult situation with possibility of being exposed to slanders, the court decided to maintain the trial without showing real name of a part of the victims and all of the injured. Some experts argue that the anonymity in the trial may violate the requirement of the Constitution for openness to the public.

 

The same background can be seen in the criminal of mass murder cases in Japan. In the indiscriminate murder in Akihabara in 2008, the criminal was annoyed by his thread on the notice board in internet disturbed by someone. In the incident of stabbing a passenger and setting fire in a train in Tokyo in 2021, the criminal was suffering from broken-heart and demotion in his job. The doctor who was in charge of the treatment for Aoba told that if structural problems of loneliness, dismay and desperation exist in a society, the society itself can solve or prevent them. No visible action against those social problems can be seen in the governmental policies.