Sometimes things happen, you party too hard, you make a couple of bad decisions and you find yourself on the wrong side of the law. The question now is, what do you do and what can you expect to happen. The first thing to know is that you need to request for your consulate to be notified and to request their assistance in your case. Having your consulate be aware of your arrest is important because not only can they relay the message about your arrest to people back home, but they can also many times get you in contact with a lawyer who speaks your language. In case you want to review some of your options for legal consultation this State Department article has plenty of information including a directory of English speaking lawyers in Japan. Even if you do tell the Japanese authorities that you want to have your consulate to be notified about your arrest don't expect to immediately get to meet with a lawyer. This is because Japan often times, if you were arrested with something like a drug crime, simply reports the arrest to INTERPOL and allows them to notify your consulate. Also Japan does not always allow for legal consultation before indictment for all crimes. While the list of crimes that warrant pre-indictment legal consultation has grown since the mid-1990's there are still some offenses that do not allow for it. It is important that if possible you utilize your pre-indictment legal consultation because according to The New York Times "Japan has a 99 percent conviction rate." So trying to avoid trial (while also avoiding prison) would be a good idea. The article also goes on to say that Japan has a well documented history of forced confessions, so bear that in mind when considering whether to confess or not, because even if it was acquired under duress that does not mean that the confession wont be used against you. Also the Japanese penal system uses solitary confinement in many instances including for drug crimes. This is true especially for the pre-indictment, period which can last for months. In case you missed it, you might want to go over the article on Illegal Japanese Meds so that you make sure you know what to not pack in your luggage. Also if you get arrested realize that you wont be able to take the medication that you brought with you for any health condition you may have. This has repeatedly caused health complications for inmates in Japanese custody. In the end you want to make sure as much as possible to avoid anything that might land you in trouble because once arrested, your options and conditions become pretty stark.
*image (but not information) was taken from the wikipedia article on prisons.
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