The family of a Japanese woman murdered by a U.S. sailor are planning to file a 200 million yen lawsuit in damages against the American sailor and the Japanese Government.

Former sailor William Reese was tried and convicted of the murder of a 56 year old Yokosuka woman Yoshie Sato on January 3rd. The family of the murdered woman are utilizing a special civil law which was passed in 1952 which stipulates that the Japanese government is obliged to compensate for damage done by U.S. military personnel in official duties.

The family is arguing that no preventative measures were taken and nothing was done to restrict Reese despite the knowledge of others that he had been drinking heavily everyday for weeks before the murder happened.

The plaintiffs also insist that the Japanese government must take oversight responsibility for the U.S. forces in Japan, citing a Supreme Court precedent that says the U.S. forces must undertake obligations under the special civil law if a crime can be foreseeable.

On June 2, Reese, 22, who was a crew member of the Yokosuka-based aircraft carrier Kitty Hawk, was sentenced to life in prison for murdering Sato, a temp worker, during a robbery attack. Reese was found guilty of killing Sato and stealing 15,000 yen from her. He is currently serving the sentence.