Sentencing

Northern Ireland’s Court of Appeal has upheld a 19-year prison sentence for offences committed by a father against his 12-day-old son. The court accepted that this was a stiff sentence, but found it reasonable given the nature of the acts in question, and given the appellant’s lack of re

The Supreme Court has allowed an appeal brought by an accused who claimed that the Court of Appeal failed to consider the totality principle in his case. The man had successfully argued in the Court of Appeal that the trial judge had erred in sentencing him for several indecent assault offences, but

Northern Ireland’s Court of Appeal has determined that the appropriate sentence for a violent repeat rapist was 18 years, with an additional five-year extended custodial sentence. In reaching this decision, the court was conscious of the violence of the attack, the appellant’s attempts t

Westminster's justice committee has called on the UK government to re-sentence all prisoners subject to Imprisonment for Public Protection (IPP) sentences. In a report published today, the committee finds that the current regime for managing IPP prisoners is inadequate in supporting their specific n

A Northern Ireland Crown Court, sitting at Laganside Courthouse, determined that a murderer must wait 20 years before being eligible for parole. This was based on the defendant’s lies regarding how his girlfriend had died, and the general lack of remorse shown by the defendant.

Northern Ireland’s Court of Appeal has denied a reduction in sentence for claims about personal mitigating circumstances and delay where the appellant was responsible for an explosion at a police station in 1997. The appellant, Paul Campbell, was unsuccessful in his appeal against conviction f

The Court of Appeal has upheld an 18-year sentence imposed on a man who committed sexual assaults of “exceptional depravity” on his daughter. The accused was charged with 92 counts of various sexual offences which occurred between the ages of three and 15. In an ex tempore ruling, Ms Jus

Northern Ireland’s Court of Appeal has rejected an appeal by a convicted terrorist who was sentenced to a 22-year minimum life sentence after killing a prison officer in a car bombing. The court found that killing a prison officer warranted a lengthy sentence, and the appellant’s alleged

Westminster's justice committee has announced the terms of reference for a new inquiry to investigate the public’s understanding of the current approach to sentencing in England and Wales. The inquiry will aim to get a better understanding of public awareness around how sentencing works, inclu

The Court of Appeal has dismissed two appeals brought by men convicted of an “appalling act of savagery and ferocity” which left a man with severe brain injuries. The men both received seven-year-and-six-month sentences, although one man had the final 24 months of his sentence suspended.

The UK Supreme Court has dismissed an appeal by a man who along with his brother was convicted of aggravated burglary in County Down, Northern Ireland, against the decision of the sentencing judge to reduce the amount of his sentencing discount. Owen Maughan contended that the sentencing judge had n

Northern Ireland’s Court of Appeal has delivered a judgment on the appropriate method for calculating custody expiry dates for prisoners facing concurrent sentences. The court rejected the argument that the calculation of a release date for one offence must take into consideration any period o

A Northern Ireland Crown Court sitting in Belfast has determined that James McVeigh will go 18 years without the possibility of parole after pleading guilty to the 2019 murder of Paul Smyth. The court’s decision was impacted by aggravating factors, such as the fact that McVeigh was out on bail

The Judicial Council's plans to develop landmark sentencing guidelines for Irish judges could be frustrated by a lack of sentencing data, particularly for cases dealt with at the District Court, a new report has warned. Professor Cyrus Tata of the Centre for Law, Crime & Justice at Strathclyde L

Guidelines should be drawn up to assist judges in the sentencing of child sex offenders, a Circuit Court judge has said. Judge John O'Connor interviewed 18 judges as part of his recently-completed PhD research, almost all of whom said they would welcome sentencing guidelines for underage sex offende