In addition to the traditional western formal criminal justice process, Japan has a distinctive second track in criminal justice processing that focuses on offenders' response to their crimes, their efforts to compensate for the harm they have done their victims, and victims' forgiveness of offenders. From the initial police interrogation to the final judicial hearing on sentencing, the vast majority of those accused of criminal offenses confess, display repentance, negotiate for their victims' pardon, and submit to the mercy of the authorities. In return they are treated with extraordinary leniency, with the prospect of even having their cases dismissed from formal processing. This aspect of criminal case processing reflects Japanese culture, but there is also evidence that it is effective criminal justice policy. There are sufficient data to justify the hypothesis that this process contributes to a reduction in recidivism, although there are insufficient comparative data to validate this hypothesis. The process confirms a growing literature on the importance of guilt acknowledgment and victim restitution to the psychological rehabilitation of offenders and to victim attitudes toward the offender and the criminal justice system. 3 tables, 2 figures, 5 notes, 41 references.