Danica Davidson
July 23, 2024 
Park Jung-hyun, who used to work as the assistant editor-in-chief in Morning magazine and editor of Bessatsu Shonen Magazine (both Kodansha publications) was found guilty by the Tokyo District Court in 2019 for murdering his wife, Kanako. The case has since gone to the Tokyo High Court, and on July 18 it agreed with the Tokyo District Court’s previous conviction and sentence.
Throughout all of this, Park has maintained his innocence. Kanako died on August 9, 2016, at age 38. Park dialed emergency services during the middle of the night, claiming he’d returned to his Tokyo home to discover Kanako at the bottom of the stairs. She was dead before she made it to the hospital.
Park’s story changed, with him later insisting that Kanako had killed herself. The autopsy, meanwhile, seems to have shown evidence of strangulation. Police believed that Park had murdered his wife, and they arrested him.
Changing the Narrative
The Tokyo High Court previously sided with the Tokyo District Court in 2021, after the initial conviction. However, Japan’s Supreme Court said in November 2022 that there needed to be another trial because some blood evidence might not have been examined correctly. Blood and saliva had been discovered in the bedroom, which had Park come up with another story about his wife wielding a knife before she killed herself. With the evidence newly examined, the Tokyo High Court still didn’t buy Park’s theory about suicide, and noted how inconsistent his stories have been.
Park was sentenced to 11 years in prison for the murder. He plans to appeal this latest court decision.
Park’s Bessatsu Shonen Magazine is where Attack on Titan was originally published, and he additionally used to be an editor for The Seven Deadly Sins. With his own sins catching up to him, Park’s days in the manga world are certain to be over.
If you or someone you know is contemplating suicide, please know that there is help available. In America, you can call 1-800-273-8255. In Canada, you can call 1-833-456-4566. In Japan, you can call 03-5774-0992. For other countries, numbers and resources are available on this site.
Source: ANN
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Danica Davidson is the author of the bestselling Manga Art for Beginners with artist Melanie Westin, plus its sequel, Manga Art for Everyone, and the first-of-its-kind manga chalk book Chalk Art Manga, both illustrated by professional Japanese mangaka Rena Saiya. Check out her other comics and books at www.danicadavidson.com.
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