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Ghosn flight prompts renewed focus on Japan's strict justice system

TOKYO — Carlos Ghosn's daring flight from Japan, where he was awaiting trial on charges of financial wrongdoing, has revived global criticism of the nation's "hostage justice," but in Japan is prompting talk of reversing more lenient curbs on defendants. The ousted boss of Japan's Nissan and France's Renault fled to Lebanon, saying on Tuesday that he had "escaped injustice" and would "no longer be held hostage by a rigged Japanese justice system." Ghosn was first arrested in November 2018 when his private jet landed in Tokyo and kept in jail for more than 100 days as prosecutors added more charges, all of which he has denied. He was released on $9 million bail in March — only to be arrested and bailed again the following month. He was facing four charges, including underreporting his Nissan salary and transferring personal financial losses to his employer's books while he ran Japan's No. 2 automaker. His apparent escape from Japan's legal system — Tokyo and Lebanon don't have an extradition treaty — will likely halt or even reverse a trend of recent years toward granting bail in more cases, said Colin Jones, a law professor at Doshisha Law School in Kyoto. “I would expect it to be more difficult for foreign defendants to get bail,” Jones said. In Japan, suspects who deny the charges against them are often detained for long periods and subject to intense questioning without a lawyer present, a system critics call "hostage justice." Japanese civil rights groups and the main bar lawyers association have long criticized a system that convicts 99.9% of criminal defendants. They say it gives too much power to prosecutors, who can detain suspects for long periods before indictment, and relies too much on confessions, some later found to have been forced and false. Ghosn's escape is clearly a shock to Japan's legal establishment. "This case raises the extremely serious issue of whether it's all right to continue the trend toward bail leniency," said former prosecutor Yasuyuki Takai. "The legal profession and lawmakers need to quickly consider new legal measures or a system to prevent such escapes," Takai, who was formerly with the special investigation unit of the prosecutor's office, told public broadcaster NHK.

Nissan GT-R and Ferrari 458 Speciale in track battle by Evo

Supercar slayer. That's what they call the Nissan GT-R. And in many ways it is, even though its price and performance over the years have risen to put it squarely in supercar territory of its own right.
In fact, as Evo magazine has been compiling a list of its fastest cars - using the Anglesey Circuit in Wales as its common ground - the GT-R has came out on top... that is, until Evo tested the Ferrari 458 Speciale. The two are about as different as you can get within the supercar segment: one has a turbo six up front driving all four wheels in a 2+2 configuration, the other a mid-engined, rear-drive V8 two-seater. In fact the only common ground you're likely to find between them comes down to their two doors and dual-clutch transmissions. Though they serve it up in different ways, both are class-leading performers.
We're looking forward to watching Evo populate its leaderboard with more entries like the McLaren 650S and more potent Nismo GT-R, but in the meantime the British enthusiast magazine, by popular demand, has released side-by-side in-car footage of both supercars putting their best lap forward around the seaside circuit.

2020 Kia Soul vs. subcompact crossovers: How they compare on paper

At 10 years old, the 2020 Kia Soul has entered its third, and potentially best, generation yet. To get here, it fought off other boxy hatchbacks such as the Scion xB and Nissan Cube. But now it faces all new competition: subcompact crossovers. They offer similar sizes, prices and flexibility as the Soul, but with a veneer of ruggedness. But the Soul is ready with its own rugged trim, the X-Line, plus the return of its powerful turbocharged variant. To see how the Soul stacks up to the fresh competition, we've compiled vital stats on all the tall hatches. Considering the prodigious size of the subcompact crossover segment, we've limited our selection to a few options that are similarly priced and sized to the Soul, and that offer a bit of funky styling. They include the Toyota C-HR, Nissan Kicks, Hyundai Kona and Honda HR-V. There are of course many more options, and you can create your own comparisons using our Compare Cars feature. (You can also check out our Mitsubishi Eclipse Cross comparison that includes a few larger choices). In the meantime, though, check out all the numbers on our selected vehicles in the chart below, followed by analysis after. Performance, fuel economy and drivetrains The crossover segment is diverse when it comes to powertrains, with all different displacements, induction systems and drive wheels. A surprising number of these supposedly rugged and off-road-oriented vehicles (at least more than normal cars) are front-drive only. These include the Nissan Kicks, Toyota C-HR and Kia Soul. But the Kona and HR-V offer all-wheel drive, with the Hyundai offering it on both engine options. Speaking of engine options, only the Kia and Hyundai have two possibilities, either a base 2.0-liter naturally aspirated engine, or a turbocharged 1.6-liter engine. The base engines have identical outputs of 147 horsepower and 132 pound-feet of torque, but the turbo engines differ. The Soul has 201 horsepower to the Hyundai's 175, but both make the same 195 pound-feet of torque. The Kicks, C-HR and HR-V all offer just one engine option, and they're all naturally aspirated. The Nissan's engine is the smallest and least powerful: a 1.6-liter engine making 125 horsepower and 115 pound-feet of torque. The HR-V is next with a 1.8-liter engine making 141 horsepower and 127 pound-feet of torque. The C-HR rounds out the trio at 144 horsepower and 139 pound-feet of torque from a 2.0-liter engine.