Antidepressants: man who hijacked plane and killed pilot is sentenced

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Fri, 25 Mar 2005 04:41:33 -0000

[sSRI-Research] Antidepressants: man who hijacked plane and

killed pilot is sentenced

 

 

 

This article reads: " A second evaluation, carried out at the

prosecution's request, concluded that Nishizawa was " under

significant influence of antidepressant drugs and was in a state of

diminished capability at the time of the crime. "

 

 

http://www.japantimes.co.jp/cgi-bin/getarticle.pl5?nn20050324a2.htm

 

Man gets life for ANA hijacking, killing pilot

 

A man who hijacked an All Nippon Airways jumbo jet and killed its

pilot in 1999 in a bid to fly it under the Rainbow Bridge in Tokyo

Bay was sentenced to life in prison Wednesday.

 

Yuji Nishizawa, 34, was found guilty by The Tokyo District Court of

hijacking the Boeing 747 during a domestic flight in July 1999 and

stabbing the plane's captain, Naoyuki Nagashima, 51, in the chest

with a kitchen knife before briefly taking control of the plane.

 

During the trial, Nishizawa confessed to having " considered flying

the plane under the Rainbow Bridge, " which crosses Tokyo Bay to link

Tokyo's Shibaura district with the Odaiba district.

 

Prosecutors had demanded a life sentence.

 

Presiding Judge Hisaharu Yasui said in handing down the ruling, " The

hijacking incident was a dangerous and vicious crime unprecedented in

Japanese crime history and tremendously damaged public trust in the

safe operation of aircraft. "

 

The central argument in the trial was whether Nishizawa was

psychologically fit at the time to have been responsible for his

actions.

 

The judge decided that Nishizawa, who was taking antidepressant drugs

at the time of the crime, could only be held partly responsible.

 

Yasui said: " The defendant bears grave responsibility for the crime

and it would be inevitable to give him capital punishment. However,

the court has decided to commute the sentence as he had diminished

responsibility.

 

" The defendant impulsively came up with murderous intent and killed

the pilot after suffering intense anxiety and frustration that he

would not be able to carry out his plan to maneuver the plane as the

pilot did not leave the cockpit. "

 

After killing the pilot, Nishizawa briefly took control of the

aircraft, carrying 503 passengers and 14 crew members, descending at

one point to an altitude of 300 meters.

 

During the hearings, his defense team admitted to the allegations but

pleaded not guilty and asked for clemency by reason of insanity.

 

Nishizawa apologized for the pilot's death before the prosecutors

made their demands.

 

" The defendant was completely capable of taking responsibility and it

would be appropriate to demand capital punishment, " said prosecutors.

However, they asked for life imprisonment instead because Nishizawa

was under the influence of antidepressant drugs at the time.

 

The trial's first psychiatric evaluation, requested by the defense,

diagnosed Nishizawa as having Asperger's syndrome, a disorder in

which a person of normal intelligence and language ability exhibits

autistic-like behavior.

 

A second evaluation, carried out at the prosecution's request,

concluded that Nishizawa was " under significant influence of

antidepressant drugs and was in a state of diminished capability at

the time of the crime. "

 

The prosecution said Nishizawa's behavior was " rational " at that time

and his killing of the pilot was " part of his enormous objectives " in

what they called a " well-premeditated " crime. Defense attorneys

argued that Nishizawa acted out of a " desire for suicide. "

 

Nishizawa sneaked onto the ANA flight bound for Sapporo at Tokyo's

Haneda airport on the morning of July 23, 1999.

 

The incident prompted the government to tighten security at airports

nationwide, including setting up a gate outside baggage claim in

Haneda airport to prevent people who are not passengers from entering

the area.

 

The Japan Times: March 24, 2005

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