Lawyers Cite Mental Problems, Ask Court to Stop Tokyo Gas Attack Mastermind’s Appeals

Lawyers for the convicted mastermind behind the 1995 nerve gas attack on the Tokyo subway have asked the Tokyo High Court to suspend their client’s appeal because he has a mental disorder and cannot stand trial, Associated Press reported last week (see GSN, June 21).

Shoko Asahara, founder of the doomsday cult Aum Shinrikyo, was convicted and sentenced to death last year for multiple crimes, including the sarin attack that killed 12. While on trial over an eight-year period, the cult leader fell asleep, mumbled incoherently and made odd gestures. His lawyers initially appealed the sentence, AP reported. The appeals process could take years (Associated Press/Find Law, July 29).

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