I think all the protesting and activism will have the opposite effect the family is looking for:
Holding the small hands of her three young children, Brittany Alkonis has been protesting near the White House since last week, demanding the Biden administration do more to free her husband, Ridge Alkonis, a 34-year-old Navy lieutenant imprisoned in Japan.
On Wednesday, she was at it again, wearing a blue T-shirt emblazoned with the words “Bring Ridge Home.” Her children – ages 8, 7 and 4 – have stood by her, along with supporters such as Trevor Reed, the former Marine recently released from Russian custody.
Ridge Alkonis is serving a three-year prison term in Japan for a car crash that left a Japanese man and woman dead. As the United States’ efforts to free Brittney Griner and Paul Whelan from Russia make headlines amid the heightened tensions of the war in Ukraine, the Alkonis family hopes their fight will draw attention to detained Americans around the world – not just those held by adversaries, but also allies.
While stationed in Japan in May 2021, Alkonis was driving home with his family and their Australian labradoodle after a visit to Mount Fuji, near Tokyo. They had gone to an area about 8,000 feet high and accessible by car. After parking, the family hiked on a mostly flat trail for a few hours, Brittany Alkonis said. On their way home at 1 p.m., Ridge Alkonis was talking to his oldest daughter as he drove.
But mid-sentence, Alkonis suddenly fell unconscious, his family said. The vehicle, going about 25 mph, veered into a parking lot and crashed into several cars that were then pushed against two pedestrians: an 85-year-old woman and her 54-year-old son-in-law. They both died. A third person, a daughter of the elderly woman, was injured. Brittany Alkonis sustained an ankle injury.
When Ridge Alkonis awoke several minutes after the crash, witnesses said his face looked pale, his family said, citing police reports. His symptoms – paleness and a loss of consciousness – align with those of acute mountain sickness, which can affect people at altitudes above 8,000 feet, according to information published by the U.S. National Library of Medicine. In June 2021, a neurologist told Alkonis that he had suffered from the illness at the time of the crash, his family said.
I bet Alkonis could have quietly had his sentenced reduced or transferred to the U.S. at some point, but he may end up doing the full time in Japan
Stars & Stripes
You can read more at the link, but I do not believe the excuse of mountain sickness when the accident happened at a much lower elevation nearer to sea level and not at the higher elevation of 8,000 feet. Dropping in altitude relieves mountain sickness and does not make it worse. He likely got up early for the trip, had been hiking all day and was tired during the drive back. The mountain sickness excuse probably caused him to get a harsher sentence because it made it appear he was not accepting responsibility for what happened.
I think the protesting is making it harder for Japanese authorities to quietly reduce his sentence or transfer him to a U.S. prison. With all the attention this is causing the Japanese public is likely going to expect their politicians to keep Alkonis in jail in Japan for his full sentence.
