A tenth and eleventh case involving controversial indefinite prison sentences have been referred to the Court of Appeal by the miscarriages of justice watchdog.
Dean Mullins was 24 when he was imprisoned for attempted murder and given a minimum term of four and a half years. He ended up serving close to 20 years in prison, only being released on license this April. The nature of the, now abolished IPP (Imprisonment for Public Protection) sentence means he remains on a life license and could be recalled to prison.
Sheldon Core was convicted of robbery in 2005 and given a minimum prison term of two and a half years. He remains in prison 21 years after the offence.
The Criminal Cases Review Commission (CCRC) is reviewing many of these such cases following successful appeals against IPP and DPP (detention for public protection) sentences earlier this year. These appeals found the sentencing judges didn’t give sufficient weight to the age and immaturity of the applicants when considering the risk they posed to the public.
CCRC Chair Dame Vera Baird KC said: ‘Our thematic work on IPP and DPP sentences is ongoing. These sentences were handed down to children and relatively young adults long ago, before the IPP/DPP sentences were abolished by statute. One would wish for a whole re-sentencing exercise to check the appropriateness of all these leftover cases. Clearly, we will continue to review cases and refer to the Courts the ones where we have identified a real possibility that these indeterminate sentences will not be upheld.’
The CCRC are examining more than 180 similar cases which could also be referred to the appeal court in the coming months.
