In late May, a 24-year-old U.S. Navy sailor at the Yokosuka Navy Base in Kanagawa Prefecture was arrested for drunk driving after bumping his car into another outside the base, slightly injuring a child inside the vehicle that was hit.
Under an April accord concerning the bilateral Status of Forces Agreement, the U.S. military reportedly demanded that Japanese police allow a military representative to be present during the sailor's interrogation.
Under the accord, the U.S. military, which reportedly views Japan's criminal justice system as short on human rights, is allowed to have a command representative present during interrogations of military personnel suspected of committing serious crimes.