Lawyers decry ban on 'menacing' eyewear at Japan prison

The jail in northern Japan stopped the prisoner bringing in his half-rimmed specs -- with a silver bar on top, and no visible frame underneath -- while serving his sentence, according to the Sapporo Bar Association, which has issued a warning to the facility.

Tsukigata Prison disallowed the glasses because they "lent a menacing aura" to the man that risked "intimidating and inviting derision from" other prisoners, the association cited the jail as saying.

The style of eyewear in question "could have a bad influence on his incarcerated life, by triggering undisciplined behaviour such as fights and bullying," it said.

A prison official defended the move when contacted by AFP.

"We believe there is nothing illegal or unjust in the way we handled the situation," the staff member said, declining to be named due to the jail's internal policy.

The prisoner, a man in his 40s who has since been released, lived without glasses for months while jailed for a traffic law violation, said the lawyers' official warning, filed in June.

His eyesight was so bad that he ended up "bumping into other inmates" and suffering "bouts of strong headaches". ...continue reading