Japanese Mother Partially Acquitted over Abuse of Daughter

   Osaka, April 21 (Jiji Press)--A Japanese district court on Monday acquitted a 35-year-old mother of charges of habitual assault and fraud after she was accused of hospitalizing her daughter, then 8, by not feeding her properly for mutual aid money.
   Kunitaka Iwasaki, presiding judge at Osaka District Court, found Kasumi Nawata, the mother, guilty of attempted coercion, sentencing her to six months in prison with a two-year probation.
   The prosecution had sought a prison term of 42 months against her. The defense denied all charges and pleaded not guilty.
   The judge dismissed the daughter's testimony that she had not been fed for several days, saying that she was confused and had errors in memory.
   "It's unnatural that she did not eat bread or other foods that were available at home," he said, acquitting Nawata of charges of habitual assault.

(2025/04/21-15:08)

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