The scheme was introduced following public outrage over a series of controversial sentencing decisions, including the 1986 ‘Ealing vicarage rape’ case where a 21-year was raped by burglars at her father’s vicarage.
It has since helped hundreds of victims of crime, with 137 criminals having their sentences increased in 2017 alone. The Attorney General has seen a huge rise in the number of requests each year due to greater public awareness of the scheme, receiving 943 requests in 2017.
Victims, prosecutors and members of the public can ask for Crown Court sentences to be reviewed by the Law Officers if they think the sentence is too low. If the Law Officers think the judges have made a gross error in sentencing, they can ask the Court of Appeal to review the sentence.
One recent high-profile case was that of the Croydon ‘zombie knife’ attacker, Joshua Gardner, who tried to attack a motorist with a large knife. He was sent to a young offender’s institute this week for three and a half years following a request under the scheme. Gardner had originally received a two-year suspended sentence for the vicious attack.
Solicitor General Robert Buckland QC MP said: ‘For 30 years, the scheme has offered people the opportunity to request the review of what they see as sentencing errors.
‘This has brought comfort to many victims of crime and their loved ones.’
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