Coercive Control as Mitigation at Sentencing
By Professor Vanessa Bettinson Read the full paper here: Coercive Control as Mitigation at Sentencing Executive Summary: • Coercive control is a recognised form of domestic abuse under section 1 of the Domestic Abuse Act 2021 and it is a criminal offence to engage in controlling or coercive behaviour in an intimate or family relationship […]
Sentencing for Murder: A Review of Policy and Practice
By Dr Richard Martin Read the full paper here: Sentencing for Murder – A Review of Policy and Practice Executive Summary: • The only sentence a court can pass for murder is life imprisonment. The mandatory life sentence is comprised of three elements: the minimum term spent in prison (handed down by the sentencing court); […]
Victim Personal Statements: A Review of Recent Research and Developments
By Freya Rock Read the full report here: Victim Personal Statements: A Review of Recent Research and Developments Executive Summary: A Victim Personal Statement (VPS) is submitted by the victim of a crime to the sentencing court to document the physical, emotional, financial, or other impact of the crime. Victim impact statements have become a […]
Parole in England and Wales: Recent Reforms and Proposals for the Future
Authors: Gavin Dingwall and Megan Millar This report examines recent changes to parole in England and Wales and considers proposals for the future. It also explores a number of areas of research that would benefit from greater attention to ensure that future reforms are underpinned by the best possible evidence. Read the full […]
Sentencing Trends in England and Wales (2002-2022)
A new analysis of sentencing trends between 2002 and 2022 has been conducted by the Sentencing Academy. This bulletin, which is the first in a series, documents changes in sentencing severity during this period and finds that whilst the use of custody and the average custodial sentence length has declined for summary offences, both have […]
Desistance and Sentencing: A Review of Research
By Dr Annie Bunce • Desistance is the cessation of offending by those with previous patterns of criminal behaviour. Desistance is a gradual, non-linear process, not simply a one-off event. This paper reviews research on the desistance process and considers the implications of key findings for the sentencing process. • Research into offending […]
Knife Crime Prevention Orders: A Review of Associated Practical Issues
The Sentencing Academy has published a new paper by our Kalisher Trust intern, Georgia-Mae Chung, exploring the practical issues arising from the implementation of Knife Crime Prevention Orders (KCPOs). The key issues identified in this paper are: – Uncertainty about their usefulness and whether they fulfil their purpose. – The low threshold for implementation […]
Fines: A review of the sanction, its use and operation, and research evidence
By Dr Jay Gormley • Criminal fines are the most common criminal sanction and account for about 75% of principal sanctions issued by courts. As a principal sanction, fines are most commonly used for relatively less serious offences where an out of court disposal (OOCD) or discharge is not appropriate or possible. However, fines can […]
Sentencing Historic Offenders: September 2022
By Dr Gabrielle Watson This paper reviews approaches to the sentencing of non-recent or ‘historic’ offenders in England and Wales. These include – but are not limited to – late prosecutions for historic sexual offending which have dominated the media in recent years. • The sentencing of historic offenders is a notoriously difficult task, […]
Deferred Sentencing: A review of practice: September 2022
Author: Dr Elaine Freer Deferred sentences are available to any judge or bench of magistrates sentencing a defendant in the magistrates’ court or Crown Court. They have been available in England and Wales since the Criminal Justice Act 1972. They are currently found in section 3 of the Sentencing Act 2020. They allow […]
Deferred Sentencing: August 2022
By Dr Elaine Freer • Deferred sentences are available to any judge or bench of magistrates sentencing a defendant in the magistrates’ court or Crown Court. They have been available in England and Wales since the Criminal Justice Act 1972. They are currently found in section 3 of the Sentencing Act 2020. • […]
Mental Disorder, Disability and Sentencing: June 2022
By Dr Ailbhe O’Loughlin • This paper addresses sentencing practices and policies in respect of convicted offenders with mental disorders, disabilities or impairments. • It considers the alternatives to custody available at sentencing that allow sentencing courts to divert convicted offenders away from punishment in prison and, where appropriate, towards treatment in the […]
