DMTea Ceremony Case

アヤワスカ茶が争われている最初の裁判

List of submitted papers

・Minoru Goto, Tomoaki Noguehi, and Takeshi Watanabe. (1958). Studies on Useful Components in Natural Sources. XVII. Studies on Uterus Contracting Ingredients in Plants. (2). On Uterus Contracting Ingredients in Lespedeza bicolor TURCZ, var., japonica NAKAI. YAKUGAKU ZASSHI, 78(5), 464-467.

・Yukino Ochiai. (2013). History and current status of herbal tea for both refreshment and health benefits. The Memoirs of the Institute of Oriental Culture, 164, 62-98.

・Luigi Servillo, Alfonso Giovane, Maria Luisa Balestrieri, Domenico Cautela, and Domenico Castaldo. (2012). N-Methylated Tryptamine Derivatives in Citrus Genus Plants: Identification of N,N,N-Trimethyltryptamine in Bergamot. Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry, 60(37), 9512–9518.

・Luigi Servillo, Alfonso Giovane, Maria Luisa Balestrieri, Rosario Casale, Domenico Cautela, and Domenico Castaldo. (2013). Citrus Genus Plants Contain N-Methylated Tryptamine Derivatives and Their 5-Hydroxylated Forms. Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry, 61(21), 5156–5162.

・Jordi Riba, Ethan H. McIlhenny, Marta Valle, José Carlos Bouso and Steven A. Barker. (2012). Metabolism and disposition of N,N-dimethyltryptamine and harmala alkaloids after oral administration of ayahuasca. Drug Testing and Analysis, 4(7-8), 610-616.

・Michael C. H. Oon, Robin M. Murray, Richard Rodnight, Marion P. Murphy & James L. T. Birley.(1977). Factors affecting the urinary excretion of endogenously formed dimethyltryptamine in normal human subjects. Psychopharmacology, 54, 171–175.

・Gerald, Thomas, Philippe Lucas, N. Rielle Capler, Kenneth W. Tupper, and Gina Martin. (2013). Ayahuasca-assisted therapy for addiction: Results from a preliminary observational study in Canada. Current Drug Abuse Reviews, 6(1), 30-42.

・Fernanda Palhano-Fontes, Dayanna Barreto, Heloisa Onias, Katia C. Andrade, Morgana M. Novaes, Jessica A. Pessoa, Sergio A. Mota-Rolim, Flávia L. Osório, Rafael Sanches, Rafael G. dos Santos, Luís Fernando Tófoli, Gabriela de Oliveira Silveira, Mauricio Yonamine, Jordi Riba, Francisco R. Santos, Antonio A. Silva-Junior, João C. Alchieri, Nicole L. Galvão-Coelho, Bruno Lobão-Soares, Jaime E. C. Hallak, Emerson Arcoverde, João P. Maia-de-Oliveira, and Dráulio B. Araújo. (2019). Rapid antidepressant effects of the psychedelic ayahuasca in treatment-resistant depression: a randomized placebo-controlled trial. Psychological Medicine, 49, 655–63.

・Jon G. Dean, Tiecheng Liu, Sean Huff, Ben Sheler, Steven A. Barker, Rick J. Strassman, Michael M. Wang and Jimo Borjigin. (2019). Biosynthesis and Extracellular Concentrations of N,N-dimethyltryptamine (DMT) in Mammalian Brain. Scientific Reports, 9, Article number: 9333.

・Robin. M. Murray and Michael. C. H. Oon (1967). The Excretion of Dimethyltryptamine in Psychiatric Patients. Proceedings of the Royal Society of Medicine, 69(11), 831-832.

・Steven A Barker, Ethan H McIlhenny, Rick Strassman (2012). A critical review of reports of endogenous psychedelic N, N-dimethyltryptamines in humans: 1955-2010. Drug Testing and Analysis, 4(7-8), 617-35.

・Richard J. Zeifman, Fernanda Palhano-Fontes, Jaime Hallak, Emerson Arcoverde, João Paulo Maia-Oliveira, and Dráulio B. Araújo. (2019). The Impact of Ayahuasca on Suicidality: Results From a Randomized Controlled Trial. Frontiers in Pharmacology, 10, 1325.

・Rafael G. Dos Santos, Flávia L. Osório, José Alexandre S. Crippa, Jordi Riba, Antônio W. Zuardi, Jaime E. C. Hallak (2016). Antidepressive, anxiolytic, and antiaddictive effects of ayahuasca, psilocybin and lysergic acid diethylamide (LSD): a systematic review of clinical trials published in the last 25 years. Therapeutic Advances in Psychopharmacology, 6(3), 193-213.


24-03-2021/2564 (C) Tatsu Hirukawa

弁護側から提出された論文

DMTは多くの植物に含まれており、飲用されている

ヤマハギ茶にはDMTが含まれており、薬草茶として用いられてきた

ミカンやレモンにはDMTが含まれている

  • 【弁12】Luigi Servillo, Alfonso Giovane, Maria Luisa Balestrieri, Rosario Casale, Domenico Cautela, and Domenico Castaldo. (2013). Citrus Genus Plants Contain N-Methylated Tryptamine Derivatives and Their 5-Hydroxylated Forms. Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry, 61(21), 5156–5162.
  • 【弁13】蛭川立（監訳）「ミカン属の植物はN-メチル化されたトリプタミン誘導体および5-ヒドロキシル化物質を含有する」
    • レモン、オレンジ、ベルガモットを含むミカン属植物にDMTが存在すること等
      • 同意
      • 検察側証人「ミカンジュースのDMTは薄くてすぐ分解されるので無害」

尿中に排出されるDMTについて

経口摂取したDMTは1日以内にほとんど排出される

DMTは哺乳類の脳内で生合成される

  • 【弁22】Jon G. Dean, Tiecheng Liu, Sean Huff, Ben Sheler, Steven A. Barker, Rick J. Strassman, Michael M. Wang and Jimo Borjigin. (2019). Biosynthesis and Extracellular Concentrations of N,N-dimethyltryptamine (DMT) in Mammalian Brain. Scientific Reports, 9, Article number: 9333.
  • 【弁23】蛭川立（監訳）「哺乳類の脳におけるN,N-ジメチルトリプタミン（DMT）の生合成と細胞外濃度」
    • ラットの脳がDMTを生合成、放出していること、心停止によりDMT濃度の増加があること等
      • 同意
      • 検察側証人「ラットの脳でDMTが合成されているとしても、ヒトの体内で合成されているという証拠にはならない」

体内で生合成された内因性DMTは尿中にも排出される

  • 【弁24】Robin. M. Murray and Michael. C. H. Oon (1967). The Excretion of Dimethyltryptamine in Psychiatric Patients. Proceedings of the Royal Society of Medicine, 69(11), 831-832.
  • 【弁25】蛭川立（監訳）「精神病患者におけるジメチルトリプタミンの排泄」
    • 内因的に生合成されたDMTの尿中排泄量は、健常者よりも急性精神病患者ではるかに高いこと等
      • 同意
      • 検察側証人「研究方法が古すぎて信頼性が低い」
  • 【弁26】Steven A Barker, Ethan H McIlhenny, Rick Strassman (2012). A critical review of reports of endogenous psychedelic N, N-dimethyltryptamines in humans: 1955-2010. Drug Testing and Analysis, 4(7-8), 617-35.
  • 【弁27】蛭川立（監訳）「1955年から2010年までの間に報告された内因性精神展開薬、N,N-ジメチルトリプタミンに関する批判的レビュー」
    • 1955年から2010年までに実施された内因性DMTの研究に関する批判的レビューの結果等。
      • 同意
      • 検察側証人「研究方法に一貫性がなく信頼性が低い」

アヤワスカ茶は薬物依存や精神疾患を改善する

  • 以下、すべて不同意：裁判長は、医学的な有用性は争点ではないという意見を表明。

アヤワスカ茶はうつ病・自殺念慮を改善する

アヤワスカ茶は薬物・アルコール依存症を改善する

アヤワスカ茶自体の毒性や依存性は低い

※検察側専門家証人は伊藤美千穂（京都大学大学院薬学研究科准教授）である。


→京都アヤワスカ茶会裁判記録目次ページに戻る

  • CE2021/03/22 JST 作成
  • CE2022/04/01 JST 最終更新

蛭川立

Saudade do Brazil

"I hate traveling and explorers. Yet here I am proposing to tell the stories of my expeditions." [*1] -The beginning of the well-known "Sad Tropical", but I agree.

I don't want to entertain people with the fact that the natives of the Amazon jungle are drinking the strongest hallucinogenic plants on earth and engaging in magical battles.

This essay is a court record. So here I write only the bare minimum of who I am [*2] .

Peru

After studying biology at Kyoto University in Japan and anthropology at the University of Tokyo, I lived in the Usco Amaringo School of Painting in Pucallpa, Peru in 2000, and was a former Crandero Mestiso painter, Pablo Amaringo. He studied under Amaringo and learned acrylic painting.

In 2001, he headed to the San Francisco village of the indigenous Shipibo, which was built on the outskirts of Pucallpa, and became the son of Crandera Unaya Fustina and learned the cosmology of Shipibo. I was deeply fascinated by the world of spirits that Ayahuasca, a herbal tea, showed me.

Brazil

In 2004, he spent his time as a visiting researcher at the University of Bezech di Menezes in Curitiba, Parana, southern Brazil. Inviting me were Fabio Edwald da Silva from the Laboratory of Experimental Parapsychology and Hezinaldo Hiraoka, a Nikkei from the Institute of Psychological and Biophysics. There are many Nikkei in Paraná, and Hyogo Prefecture, which sent Nikkei from Kobe Port, has a sister prefecture agreement with Paraná.

During my stay in Curitiba, I was invited by my university colleagues Siberi Pilato and Heginardo Hiraoka to build the Santo Daime Church (Sebastian eclectic[*3]) I attended the Parana branch church. Worship was held twice a month, on the night of the new moon and on the night of the full moon. He also visited the rituals of Umbanda and Candomblé, and the mate tea ceremony of the indigenous Guarani.

He also hit the UDV gate twice, but was turned down twice. UDV is a disciplined organization and I wasn't allowed to attend because I wanted to go on a tour.

The Sebastian eclectic Daimistas were open. I didn't have to be a member, but when I first attended the service, I had to sign the paperwork. You don't have to be a Christian, but you have to write a religion that you believe in. I don't believe in any particular religion, but in fact most Japanese do. So I was a little lost, but I wrote "Zen" in that column. Since I am Japanese, it is easy to understand if I write Zen Buddhism. But in fact, I was interested in Zen Buddhism and the philosophy of the Kyoto School. In the column for the purpose of participating in worship, I wrote "to see myself."

In fact, among the Daimistas in the Brazilian city, the purpose of worship was to look at oneself in addition to belief in Christianity. Interest in Buddhism and Indian philosophy was widespread. The branch church in Paranavaí was in training with Halle Krishna. It was also surprising that the chant during worship suddenly changed from Portuguese to Sanskrit.

In Brazil, ayahuasca tea was legally allowed to be used only inside church buildings by government-approved religious corporations. Only once, I couldn't stand the nausea during the worship service, and I was taken to the outdoor toilet while being held by a staff member in a white suit. I saw infinity in the starry sky I looked up at that time. It was the most awe-inspiring experience of my stay in Brazil. This may have been what Pascal wanted to write in Pensées.

After returning to Japan, I was assigned to a new faculty established at Meiji University in Tokyo to teach anthropology.


22-03-2021/2564 (C) Tatsu Hirukawa

*1:Je hais les voyages et les explorateurs. Et voici que je m'apprête à raconter mes expéditions. Claude Levi-Strauss. (1985). Tristes Tropiques. Pocket.

Tristes Tropiques [French]

Tristes Tropiques [French]

*2:Details, especially my experience in Peru are in my book, "Higan no Jikan (The Equinoctial Time)"

彼岸の時間―“意識”の人類学

彼岸の時間―“意識”の人類学

  • 作者:蛭川 立
  • 発売日: 2009/05/20
  • メディア: 単行本
and "Seishin no Seiza (The Constellation of the Spirit)"
精神の星座 (内宇宙飛行士の迷走録)

精神の星座 (内宇宙飛行士の迷走録)

  • 作者:蛭川立
  • 発売日: 2011/07/23
  • メディア: 単行本
Please refer to these books. I didn't elaborate on my experience in Brazil in these books, so I'll supplement it here.

*3:Centro Eclético da Fluente Luz Universal Raimundo Irineu Serra (CEFLURIS)

Fifth and subsequent trials

The four trials, from the fifth trial in November 2020 to the eighth trial in March 2021 (scheduled to take place), will end with a brief exchange between the prosecution and the defense. , The stalemate continues.

From January 8th to March 21st, 2021, Japan's metropolitan areas were once again declared a state of emergency. The trial continued, but no substantial progress was made. The number of listeners has decreased. Defendant Aoi has no turn.

The prosecution demanded that the defense provide evidence to support the allegations. The defense submitted 13 academic treatises to the prosecution to support the allegations. Eleven of them were English treatises. The prosecution argued that English treatises could not be understood correctly without translating the entire text into Japanese. The defense argued that it was impossible to translate the whole sentence into Japanese, and that there was no problem because the English treatise was submitted in full.

After all, for treatises written in English, only the abstracts and main charts will be translated into Japanese.

It was Kikuyama, Aoi himself, myself, and about five collaborators who did the process from selection to translation of the treatise. I don't necessarily want to cooperate only with the defense. Although it is a criminal trial, there are no victims, and the prosecution's and defense's arguments are not in conflict in the first place. What seems to be in conflict is a misunderstanding due to the prosecution's lack of study. Attorney Kikuyama met me for the first time at the first trial, but he persuaded me, saying, "Let's educate the prosecution." As part of the social activities of university professors, I decided to participate in educational activities on drug issues.

Kikuyama has been studying very hard, even though he is not a specialist in drug cases. Prosecutors, on the other hand, seem to be trying to learn almost nothing. I'm too busy with work and I don't have time to study, but withdrawing the prosecution makes it even more troublesome. I think there were many mistakes in Aoi's actions, so I think the prosecution's allegations make sense. But the lack of a humble attitude toward the prosecutors, who are given their lives and jobs by our blood tax, was a good reason why I couldn't trust them.

The trial provided an unexpected but invaluable opportunity for official debate about the substance DMT and the herbal tea Ayahuasca. Rather, I would like experts such as the Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare and the Institute for Scientific Research behind the prosecution to understand it.

I shared the work of translating the treatise as efficiently as possible, but in the end, as a translator, I refined all the translation results. From analytical chemistry to psychiatry and statistical analysis methods used in research, I also studied desperately while doing my main job. For me, who transferred from Kyoto University to the University of Tokyo and turned to the field of psycho-anthropology, studying microbiology reminds me of what I learned at Kyoto University, where I was in the master's program, and for thirty years of life sciences. I was surprised at the progress of the university, and it was a task to go back and relearn. The Kyoto District Court is located on the opposite bank of Kyoto University across the Kamo River, so it reminded me of the time when I was excited about my studies every time I visited.

At the 8th trial, I was finally able to submit all 13 treatises with Japanese translations. However, the prosecution's opinions were all disagreeable. Nothing was shown as to which argument in which treatise was problematic, and all were rejected because all the treatises were unreliable. It seems that the judge has finally begun to think that the situation is strange.

Defendant Aoi is still positive thinking, laughing saying that this was thirty years too early. According to him, the prosecutor in charge, Tachikawa, tried to receive the translated material, but his boss told him that he should disagree. It seems that if the Kyoto District Court agrees and is acquitted, it will be disadvantageous when fighting at the next Osaka High Court. What does that mean? As usual, I don't really understand the reasoning behind the trial.

Apparently, it is inevitable that Aoi will be acquitted by the Kyoto District Court, and it seems that a small shake has begun to occur inside the Kyoto District Public Prosecutor's Office or the Japanese prosecution organization. I could understand it.

People who lack humility for knowledge are leaving Rakuchu. Even if the center of politics moves to Tokyo, I hope Kyoto is still a place to generate Japanese culture. And the Kyoto District Court will save the research results, which are a little too early to be read, in Japanese.


The trial has not progressed much since the fifth trial. However, Aoi is also an actor. He never bores the listener. On December 21, after the sixth trial held on the afternoon of the winter solstice, Kikuyama explained the points of the trial at the lawyer's hall adjacent to the Kyoto District Court. Was the audience about 20 people?

Defendant Aoi, who was in the audience, suddenly stood up, took the hand of his fiancée sitting next to him, and took the stage. With no time for the audience to think about what was happening, the two immediately kissed and hugged hot. It is a common greeting in Brazil, but Japanese people do not do such an act in public. The audience was disappointed. The two have proclaimed that they are now signing a marriage registration.

Why is this timing? There is talk of acquittal or a prison marriage, but this was also an unexpected event.

In addition, Kikuyama was appointed as a witness for this court marriage. And I was nominated as another witness. There was water in my ears. I wasn't publicly involved in the trial, and I didn't prepare any celebrations. As expected, he has no criminal record, but he has a history of divorce and is not qualified to be a senior in his family life.

In the first place, I didn't know what a witness was in marriage registration. Fortunately, I was able to ask the lawyer Kikuyama, a legal expert next door, what the witnesses mean. He was taught that the witnesses in the marriage registration are no more, no less, confirming that they are willing to marry. I asked them if they were willing to marry and signed the marriage registration. At the very least, as a surprise, I stamped a seal dug in the Dongba characters that I happened to have.

The marriage registration was submitted and accepted by the Kyoto City Nakagyo Ward Office, which is neither the birthplace nor the place of residence of either couple, but will be understood as the birthplace of domestic Ayahuasca culture in the not too distant future.


Copyright 04-04-2021/2564 JST
(C) Tatsu HIrukawa

Author's point of view

In an emergency situation due to COVID-19 infection, Japan's first trial over the legality of Ayahuasca has begun.

However, even if you tell most Japanese about this, almost no one knows about the hallucinogenic plants used by the indigenous peoples of South America. Also, Japan and other non-Western countries have not experienced psychedelic counterculture, so even if you have heard the name psychedelic, you can only recognize it as a kind of dangerous drug in general.

I thought it wouldn't be understood in Japan, so I contacted Westerners, but they asked whether Daime or UDV was sued. It's not such a systematic trial. A young plant nerd man was arrested and charged with selling a DMT plant that grows naturally in Japan online. And when I explain that, it makes them wonder again.

Even if it is illegal, why would it be prosecuted and brought to justice? In developed countries in Europe and the United States, such personal buying and selling is common, and it's not good but there are too many other crimes and they have no time to be involved. Even in Japan, where there are few crimes, the situation is not so different. At best, he will be warned, or even if he is arrested, he will not be prosecuted. Arresting without warning is not a good idea.

Aoi sold a herb that was said to be effective against depression through the Internet, and a college student who bought and drank it suffered health problems, so he was sued under the Pharmaceutical Machinery Law. Defendant Aoi is the perpetrator and college student is the victim. At first I thought so, but it wasn't. Both Aoi and college student were accused of violating the Narcotics and Psychotropics Control Act. The college student, who was supposed to be the victim, was said to have been an accomplice to Aoi. I was dissatisfied with this.

So why was he charged? I don't know, and that's exactly the mystery of this case. The Japanese judiciary is called precision judiciary, and detailed investigations are conducted between the time of arrest and the time of prosecution. Therefore, I learned that 99.9% of the accused were convicted. The trial is a strict ritual act. This precisely completed system has protected the extremely stable society of postwar Japan.

This is just my reasoning, but it seems that a young prosecutor, who is still inexperienced, has prosecuted a suspect who should not be prosecuted. However, she was loyal to her mission, just because she was inexperienced. Since most drug crimes in Japan are stimulants, I think DMT may have been mistaken for a new type of stimulant. It is a mistake due to youth, which should be fully taken into consideration and has room for rehabilitation. If I write so, the prosecutor and the accused will be reversed for some reason. But that's not the case. Since the public prosecutor's office is a public organization, the failure of individual members will be the negligence of the entire organization. You cannot blame the individual who faithfully performed the mission.

Defendants, on the other hand, they would normally be remorseful and suspended, meaning that they would be virtually acquitted, but he says his actions were a relief for the sick. He will not give up. However, there is no strong religious passion there. Since trial is a sport that complies with the rules of law, he continues to fight with the logic that we must play fair. In short, he does not dispute the precision system itself that has guaranteed Japan's security. Rather, it can be said that he is paying respect.

This complete bureaucracy, 99.9% precision system, acts as a very good safety device while it is operating normally, but 0.1% malfunction is unexpected. The more detailed the system, the more vulnerable it is that it cannot respond to unexpected situations.

The transcendental world of psycho-developing drugs poses a potential danger that threatens the maintenance of secular social order. However, this time, the nation did not crack down on the danger. Therefore, the issue is ambiguous.

Here, I want to record the incident as objectively as possible. This case is difficult to describe in an easy-to-understand story, such as the fight against unjustified crackdowns by state power, the sadness of victims, the mystery of detective novels, and the madness of cult religion. The reader may find it boring, but that kind of lack of narrative may be the story of modern Japanese and younger generations of culture.

For example, the tea developed by Defendant Aoi is not South American Ayahuasca tea. It is Ayahuasca analog. It is a combination of plants that also grow as weeds, such as acacia and mimosa, and MAOI supplements that can be imported individually. It looks like an ad hoc combination of herbs and chemicals in different contexts, but in fact it is the most rational bricolage of familiar things.

Even though it is objectively boring, it is an interpretation from the perspective of a Japanese, middle-aged man, and anthropologist. There may be a rich undeciphered meaning behind this case, but I may have overlooked it. That is why I want to make this record public. I hope that people from many cultures, or future people, will read this case in a different paradigm than I do, and if possible, discuss it together.


22-03-2021/2564 (C) Tatsu Hirukawa

Issues in the Kyoto Ayahuasca Tea Ceremony Trial

0, DMT in urine-is it derived from tea?

Urinalysis of Defendant Aoi

  • At a tea ceremony held on 26th February 2020, Defendant Aoi stated that he took mimosa tea with moclobemide.
  • On 3rd March 3 2020, when Aoi was arrested, Aoi's urine was collected. As a result of the analysis, DMT was detected in urine.
  • On 18th May 2020, Aoi's urine was collected during Aoi's detention. As a result of the analysis, no DMT was detected in urine.
  • On 19th June 19 2020, when Aoi was re-arrested, Aoi's urine was collected. As a result of the analysis, no DMT was detected in urine.

Prosecution's claim

  • The detection of DMT in the urine collected on 3rd March is evidence that Aoi applied mimosa tea at the tea party on February 26.
  • No DMT was detected in the urine collected on 18th May and19th June supporting the above reasoning.

Defense counterargument

  • Intrinsic DMT is biosynthesized in the human body and excreted in the urine.
  • Even when humans take DMT with the MAOI moclobemide, most of it is metabolized within 12 hours, after which the amount excreted in the urine is indistinguishable from endogenous DMT.
  • Therefore, even if DMT is detected in the urine collected 6 days after taking mimosa tea, it does not provide physical evidence that Aoi took mimosa tea.

Prosecution's counterargument

  • If DMT is synthesized in the human body, it should not be necessary to take DMT from outside the body.

Defendant Aoi's counterargument

  • Long-term meditation practice is required for humans to biosynthesize sufficient amounts of DMT.
  • People who are currently suffering cannot afford long-term meditation practices. Therefore, it is necessary to take DMT from outside the body.

1, Definition of narcotics-Is tea a drug?

Prosecution's claim

  • Mimosa tea is a drug extracted from DMT, which is a drug contained in mimosa, with water.
  • Aoi manufactures tea to enjoy the benefits of DMT, which is intentional, not negligent.

Defense counterargument

2, Criminal statutory principle-Is it possible to crack down on the tea of ​​the Herbal Association?

Defense claim

  • DMT is found in many plants.
  • DMT dissolved in water is distributed and taken (to enjoy its medicinal properties).
    • Citrus oranges and lemons, including DMT, dissolved in water are widely distributed as juices, but have not been cracked down as narcotics.
    • Hagi tea, which is made by dissolving Yamahagi containing DMT in water, has traditionally been taken and has been recognized as an effective drug for neurosis and gynecological diseases, but it has not been cracked down as a drug.
    • Ayahuasca tea, including DMT, is used by religious groups of Brazilian origin, but has not been cracked down as a drug.
  • If you are only cracking down on acacia and mimosa teas produced by Aoi, you should explain why.
  • If, for no reason, only the tea produced by Defendant Aoi is cracked down, it is unconstitutional, contrary to the principle of clarity of the criminal statutory principle stipulated by the Constitution.

3, Legitimate act-Is the tea ceremony a serious religious act?

Defense claim

  • Defendant Aoi held a tea ceremony not for entertainment purposes but for the purpose of healing people suffering from mental disorders based on spiritual worship and Buddhist ideas.
    • Plant teas, including DMT, such as ayahuasca tea, have been used by indigenous peoples of South America for therapeutic rituals and have not been used for recreational purposes.
    • Ayahuasca tea improves mental illness.
      • Ayahuasca tea improves treatment-resistant depression.
      • Ayahuasca tea improves suicidal ideation.
      • Ayahuasca tea has no dependence. Conversely, it improves addiction to ethyl alcohol and cocaine.
      • Ayahuasca tea has no harmful side effects.
  • Even if Ayahuasca tea is illegal, Aoi's act is a serious religious act. This is a legitimate act stipulated by the criminal law, and illegality is blocked.

As of March 2020, the prosecution has not made a clear counterargument regarding the issues 0 to 3. In particular, it has been nine months since the defense counsel insisted on 1-3 at the first trial held in June 2020.

Author's consideration

The author wants to consider this case from an academically fair standpoint. However, I have to think that there are many mistakes in the reason why the prosecutor charged Aoi. Also, the fact that the prosecution does not make a logical counterargument to most of the defense's allegations is that, in effect, most of the defense's allegations are acknowledged, that is, the prosecution's allegations are incorrect. I have to think that it is equivalent to admitting that.

This is my reasoning and is not necessarily the same as the defendant's or defense counsel's allegations.

About urinary DMT

  • The prosecutor may have misunderstood DMT as a substance similar to the stimulant methamphetamine.
    • Most of the controlled drugs abused in Japan are methamphetamine.
    • Methamphetamine is excreted in the urine for about 10 days after taking it.
    • The prosecutor may not have known that DMT is synthesized inside the human body.
  • If so, the prosecution is wrong.

About the definition of narcotics

  • Whether or not to regulate tea as a drug should be stipulated by law.
    • The Japanese Narcotics and Psychotropics Control Law does not regulate plants other than narcotic raw materials.
    • The Japanese Narcotics and Psychotropics Control Law does not mention tea made from plants other than narcotic raw materials.
      • There is no precedent for such tea.
    • Domestic law can be regulated more stringently than international treaties and their interpretations.
  • Therefore, the judgment of whether tea is legal or not can only be left to the judgment of the judge.

About criminal statutory principle

  • As the defense argues, there is no reason why only Aoi's tea is regulated.

About legitimate acts

  • It is difficult to judge whether Aoi's tea party is a serious religious act. The Herbal Association is not licensed as a religious corporation.
  • Ayahuasca tea has been used exclusively in religious ceremonies in indigenous peoples of South America and religious movements of Brazilian origin. If Aoi's tea party was held based on this culture or Buddhist thought, it would be a religious act.
    • Especially in Brazil, ayahuasca tea is legalized only for use within the facilities of licensed religious groups. However, there are no such laws or precedents in Japan.
  • Even if Ayahuasca tea improves mental illness, treatment is not justified because Aoi is not a doctor.


15-03-2021/2564 (C) Tatsu Hirukawa
19-03-2021/2564 Last Revised.

Kyoto DMTea Ceremony Case -Time series of events-

The Case of a University Student

  • 24th July 2019
    • A university student purchased acacia wood chips from the "Medicinal Herb Association" operated by Aoi Glass and had it as tea at his home in Kyoto Prefecture. A few hours later, he complained of physical and mental disorders and was rushed to the hospital. (The causal relationship between taking acacia tea and physical and mental disorders is unknown.)
    • Kyoto Prefectural Police examined the urine of the university student and detected DMT.
    • In addition, acacia tea was discovered in the house of the university student, and DMT was detected in the tea.
  • Since the university student was a minor and was protected by the family court, no further information has been released.

The Case of Aoi Glass

Arrest and Detention

Aoi Glass was detained for three months after his arrest. This is an unusually long period of detention, but it is also related to the suspension of court operations due to the state of emergency issued for the spread of the new coronavirus infection.

  • 26th February 2020
    • Aoi Glass held a Mimosa tea party at his friend's house in Osaka.
  • (Friends who attended the tea party have stated that they are not taking mimosa tea. In the treatment rituals of indigenous people in the Amazon, only Sherman has tea and clients often do not. )
  • 3rd March 2020
    • Kyoto Prefectural Police arrested Aoi Glass at his house in Mie Prefecture.
    • DMT was detected in acacia tea at Aoi Glass's house.
    • DMT was detected in the urine of Aoi Glass.
    • Aoi Glass detained at Tanabe police station, Kyoto Prefecture.
  • 7th April 2020
    • A state of emergency was issued as the new coronavirus infection spreads.
    • Aoi Glass prosecution [1] (aiding and abetting a university student to manufacture and use Narcotics)
  • 14th April 2020
    • Aoi Glass prosecution [2] (Narcotics possession)
  • 18th May 2020
    • Aoi Glass second urine test. DMT was detected in urine.
  • 21st May 2020
    • Lifting of state of emergency.
  • 29th May 2020
    • Aoi Glass, prosecution [3] (Narcotics use)
  • 8th June 2020
    • First trial (Kyoto District Court)
  • 11th June 2020
    • Aoi Glass bail.
  • 19th June 2020
    • Aoi Glass re-arrested.
    • Third urine test. No DMT was detected in urine.
  • 26th June 2020
    • Aoi Glass indicted [4] (providing Narcotic Raw Materials)
  • 30th June 2020
    • Aoi Glass bail

Indictment

Defendant Aoi was charged with four cases while in custody, but then in August, three more cases were prosecuted, for a total of seven cases. The list is as follows.

  1. 7th April 2020
    • Mayu Imajo (Kyoto District Public Prosecutors Office)
    • Reiwa 2nd year (wa [*1] ) No. 316 (Manufacturing and application assistance)
      • Aoi Glass "aided and abetted" a university student to "manufacture" and "use" Narcotics in July 2019.
  2. 14th April 2020
    • Mayu Imajo (Kyoto District Public Prosecutors Office)
    • Reiwa 2nd year (wa) No. 353 (Narcotics possession)
      • Aoi Glass "possessed" Narcotics on 3rd March 2020.
  3. 29th May 2020
    • Mayu Imajo (Kyoto District Public Prosecutors Office)
    • Reiwa 2nd year (wa) No. 453 (Narcotics use)
      • Aoi Glass "used" drugs at an acquaintance's house on 26th February 2020.
  4. 26th June 2020
    • Mayu Imajo (Kyoto District Public Prosecutors Office)
    • Reiwa 2nd year (wa) No. 574 (providing Raw Materials)
      • Aoi Glass "provided" the Narcotic "Raw Materials" to customers.
  5. 12th August 2020
    • Mayu Imajo (Kyoto District Public Prosecutors Office)
    • Reiwa 2nd year (wa) No. 771 (providing Raw Materials)
      • Aoi Glass "provided" the Narcotic "Raw Materials" to customers.
  6. 31st August 2020
    • Hiroshi Nakamura (Kyoto District Public Prosecutors Office)
    • Reiwa 2nd year (Wa) No. 831 No. 1 (Providing Raw Materials)
      • Aoi Glass "provided" the Narcotic "Raw Materials" to customers.
  7. 31st August 2020
    • Hiroshi Nakamura (Kyoto District Public Prosecutors Office)
    • Reiwa 2nd year (wa) No. 831 No. 2 (manufacturing assistance)
      • Aoi Glass "aided and abetted" the same customer as above to "manufacture" Narcotics.

trial

The trials were held seven times by February 2021, but will continue thereafter. Again, the list is below.

  1. 8th June 2020
    • First trial (Kyoto District Court)
  2. 20th July 2020
    • Second trial (Kyoto District Court)
    • (Three prosecutions will be filed on August 12th and 31st)
  3. 7th September, 2020
    • Third trial (Kyoto District Court)
  4. 12th October 2020, 11:00 AM
    • The 4th Trial (Kyoto District Court No. 101 En Banc)
  5. 16th November 2020, 11:00 AM
    • Fifth Trial (Kyoto District Court No. 101 En Banc)
  6. 21st December 2020, 13:30 PM
    • The 6th Trial (Kyoto District Court No. 101 En Banc)
  7. 16th February 2021, 11:00AM
    • The 7th Trial (Kyoto District Court No. 101 En Banc)
  8. 25th March 2021 (planned)
    • The 8th Trial (Kyoto District Court No. 101 En Banc)

*1:" wa" is a code indicating a normal proceeding in a district court. Https://home.hiroshima -u.ac.jp/hirano/nyumon/fugo2005.htm