The murder of a third year female high school student in Mitaka in western Tokyo on Oct. 8 by a stalker whom she had reported to the police was a senseless tragedy. Her death, along with several others at the hands of stalkers, are not totally in vain as they have spurred a review of how police handle stalking cases. The internal probe not only assigned blame in the Mitaka case but also established new guidelines, task forces and procedures that will hopefully prevent such tragedies from taking place in the future.

The Mitaka case and other similar crimes underscored the mishandling of complaints made to local police by people fearing for their lives. The results of an internal probe by the National Police Agency found that the officers involved did not take appropriate action to ensure the safety of the victims.

In the case of the Mitaka student, both her teachers and the victim herself reported to the police that she was being stalked. However, officers at both the Suginami and Mitaka police stations did not respond in an appropriate manner. They failed to take steps to ensure her safety, such as tracking down her alleged stalker or providing her and those concerned for her safety with advice on what protective measures she should take, such as moving to a safer location.