In the lowlands

Were it that it were the topographic outline of a day hike in the Japan Alps, possibly the second day of a two-day, multi-summit trip.

Or deaths from mesothelioma, after farsighted MITI bureacrats banned of the use of blue asbestos in construction and manufacturing in 1969.

Anything but what it is--the likelihood that if you are taken into police custody, you will see the sky again before your trial begins.

Courtesy: Yomiuri Shimbun

13.8% = less than 1 chance in 7

So much for the presumption of innocence.

It is a sobering, infuriating graph--indicative of a silent systemic failure.

And do the editors understand what they are printing?

Evidently not, if one goes by the big, bold headline on page 3 of this morning's Yomiuri Shimbun:

「否認でも保釈」の動き

"Hinin de mo hoshaku" no ugoki

The Trend of "Releasing Them on Bail Even When Thy Deny They Committed a Crime"

"Even when" they deny committing a crime? "Even when"?

Bowels of Christ, think it possible they might be innocent!

* * *

Miyauchi Ryoji, the former chief financial officer of Livedoor, will plead has pled guilty today to the charges of falsifying financial documents. He will be a witness for the prosecution in the case against Horie Takafumi when his case is brought before the court sometime this summer.

Here is a picture of Miyauchi Ryoji at the time of his release from jail on March 17, printed in last evening's Asahi Shimbun.

Not even the shave can hide it: he is a shell of a human being. He is not even happy to be free.

He has been held in solitary confinement in an unheated 2 meter by 3.5 meter cell since January 23 during what was the coldest winter in recent memory.

He has probably been interrogated every day, for hours at a stretch.

He has been repeatedly offered false promises of leniency should he turn against Horie.

His lawyer has been from the outset advising him to agree with the prosecutor's version of events, even when he knows what the truth is.

Here is the story being told in the press of Miyauchi's decision to become the Diana Rigg of Livedoor.

See if you can spot the inconsistencies.

Livedoor's ex-execs prepare for court
The Yomiuri Shimbun
...

Immediately following a police investigation of Livedoor headquarters on Jan. 16, Miyauchi considered how best to defend Horie and protect the firm from being delisted from the Tokyo Stock Exchange. To this end, he assembled the company's executives, including Horie, to discuss how to deal with the investigation. According to the sources, Miyauchi issued a proposal to those gathered: "We should only protect the president. If we are investigated, we should tell them I made all the decisions."

However, Horie did not seem to pay any attention to Miyauchi's proposal. Instead he repeatedly denied his own involvement, saying, "I didn't know anything, right?"

Seeing that Horie was only concerned with protecting himself, Miyauchi decided it was a fool's errand to defend Horie, and instead opted for a clear break from the now former Livedoor president.

Since his arrest on Jan. 23, Miyauchi has told investigating prosecutors of Horie's mind-set and the particulars of his participation in Livedoor's alleged account padding.

First, forget the little chronological problem of Miyauchi's having been in China at the time of the evening raid--making it impossible for him to assemble the company's executives immediately to cook up a cover story. Forget also that Horie was in his apartment all night long January 16-17 as investigators went through his things, then went on television from 7 a.m. with a story he has not changed one iota since.

Second, forget that Miyauchi supposedly is disenchanted that Hories denies involvement in any crime after Miyauchi instructs everyone at this assembly that they should protect the president above all else...and that if anything comes up, they should blame him--that is to say Miyauchi. At that point, isn't Horie following Miyauchi's instructions?

No, let's concentrate on the biggest problem of all--and by this I do not mean the morning Yomiuri accounts's and last night's Asahi account's both relying solely on the infamous, anonymous "sources close to the investigation" rather than first-person quotes from the folks involved.

Miyauchi is arrested on January 23. He has already decided to sell Horie out. He tells the prosecutors everything, everything--including "particulars of Horie's mind-set."

He is released 54 days later.

54 days? In solitary? When he is cooperating fully?

Give me a break.