Sentencing

(asked on 4th December 2017) - View Source

Question to the Attorney General:

To ask the Attorney General, how many sentences broken down by offence were referred to him for being unduly lenient fell outside the Unduly Lenient Scheme in the latest year for which data is available.


Answered by
Robert Buckland Portrait
Robert Buckland
This question was answered on 14th December 2017

837 cases were referred to the AG in 2016. 256 of the 837 cases did not fall within the ULS scheme because they were not imposed in the Crown Court following conviction for an offence within the scheme.

A case will be recorded as not falling within the ULS scheme if the offence is outside the ULS scheme, the defendant is not convicted, or they are not sentenced in the Crown Court.

The Attorney General’s Office records the cases which do not fall within the ULS scheme primarily by “offence type”. The 256 cases were recorded in the following offence categories:

Offence type:

Number of cases:

Arson

1

Burglary

10 (8 of these sentences were for offences not in the ULS scheme and 2 defendants were acquitted of offences within the ULS scheme)

Death by careless driving

13

Death by dangerous driving

2 (both these defendants were acquitted)

All other driving - total

21

Causing serious injury by dangerous driving

8

Dangerous driving

6

Driving with excess alcohol

3

Driving while disqualified

2

Driving without due care and attention

1

Driving over the speed limit

1

Fraud

19

Hate crime

3 (these defendants were sentenced in the magistrates’ court)

Other - total

67

Offences relating to animals

19

Assault offences (other than under the Offences Against the Person Act 1861)

11

Assisting an offender

2

Assisting unlawful immigration

1

Child abduction

2

Breaching a court order

4

Breaching of health and safety law

1

Criminal damage

1

Harassment and stalking

4

Miscellaneous

9

Terrorism offences

4

Sending a threatening communication

1

Weapons offences

4

Witness intimidation

4

Section 18 of the Offences Against the Person Act 1861

1 (this sentence was imposed after the Court of Appeal ordered a retrial)

Section 20 of the Offences Against the Person Act 1861

34

Section 47 of the Offences Against the Person Act 1861

32

Sexual Offences Act 1956

1 (this defendant was found unfit to plead and the indictment stayed)

Sexual Offences Act 2003

10 (4 of these sentences concerned abuse of trust offences, 2 of these sentences were imposed in the youth court, and 1 of these sentences was imposed in Scotland)

Indecent images of children

30

Theft

11

Total:

255[1]

[1] There is 1 case for which the Attorney General’s Office has not recorded the offence category.

Reticulating Splines