Departures of note

Izumi Suzuki was born in 1947 in Nagoya, Japan. He entered the University of Tokyo, graduating in 1976 and was admitted to the bar the same year. After completing his legal training, he began practicing law in Tokyo and quickly became known for his meticulous approach to criminal defense.

In 1983 Suzuki joined the legal team seeking a retrial for the 1961 Nagahama poison‑wine case, in which five women were killed and former death‑row inmate Katsu Okunishi was sentenced to death. He became the head of the re‑trial request team in 2002, overseeing the submission of multiple petitions to the Nagoya High Court and advocating for a review of the original conviction. His work kept the case in the public eye for decades and highlighted issues in Japan’s criminal justice system.

Suzuki continued to practice law while leading the retrial effort until his death. He was diagnosed with acute myeloid leukemia in June of the previous year and received treatment, but his condition worsened in July 2026. He passed away on August 3, 2026, at a hospital in Ichinomiya, Aichi Prefecture, at the age of 79.