Victims and bereaved families will have up to six months to challenge sentences they believe are unduly lenient under major reforms to the criminal justice system. The window for applications will increase from 28 days to six months, giving families more time to seek advice and consider their options.
In its announcement, the government stated that introducing this extension aims to ‘deliver justice for all victims and restore faith in the justice system’.
The reform concerns the Unduly Lenient Sentence scheme, where certain Crown Court sentences can be referred to the Attorney General for possible review by the Court of Appeal. This process applies to serious offences, including murder and rape, where the initial punishment is argued to be significantly lower than sentencing guidelines suggest.
The reform will also set a duty to notify victims of the scheme and their rights to refer sentences through the scheme by strengthening the Victims’ Code.
The emotional impact of the current system was highlighted by the family of teenager Sasha Marsden, who was stabbed and killed in 2013. Her sister, Katie Brett welcomed the reforms and said that ‘our lives were turned upside down when my 16-year-old sister Sasha was murdered. Like all victims, we only had 28 days to appeal the sentence and we were not told until it was too late.
Tracy Hanson was also a prominent campaigner over seven years following the death of her son, Josh. She said that ‘these changes represent a hard-fought victory in ensuring that families are no longer left in the dark or rushed through a traumatising process during the most painful moments of their lives.’
Minister for Victims, Alex Davies-Jones, in announcing the changes, said that ‘victims deserve to know that the Unduly Lenient Sentence Scheme exists, and they shouldn’t pay a price if they don’t. That will no longer be the case. We’re making sure the system works for victims, not against them.’
Victims’ Commissioner Claire Waxman described the move as a ‘significant and long overdue’ reform following the ‘appalling injustice’ experienced by Tracey Hanson. She noted that this extension would ensure ‘greater parity between victims and offenders’, particularly in securing reasonable timeframes for appeals. She added that the new legal duty to notify survivors would ensure families can access the system and help restore trust in a process that has often failed to support them.
