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PART 12 continued CHAPTER 1 continued
(1) This section applies where a court has, in fixing the amount of a fine, determined the offender’s financial circumstances under section 164(5).
(2) If, on subsequently inquiring into the offender’s financial circumstances, the court is satisfied that had it had the results of that inquiry when sentencing the offender it would—
(a) have fixed a smaller amount, or
(b) not have fined him,
it may remit the whole or part of the fine.
(3) Where under this section the court remits the whole or part of a fine after a term of imprisonment has been fixed under section 139 of the Sentencing Act (powers of Crown Court in relation to fines) or section 82(5) of the Magistrates' Courts Act 1980 (magistrates' powers in relation to default) it must reduce the term by the corresponding proportion.
(4) In calculating any reduction required by subsection (3), any fraction of a day is to be ignored.
(1) Nothing in—
(a) section 148 (imposing community sentences),
(b) section 152, 153 or 157 (imposing custodial sentences),
(c) section 156 (pre-sentence reports and other requirements),
(d) section 164 (fixing of fines),
prevents a court from mitigating an offender’s sentence by taking into account any such matters as, in the opinion of the court, are relevant in mitigation of sentence.
(2) Section 152(2) does not prevent a court, after taking into account such matters, from passing a community sentence even though it is of the opinion that the offence, or the combination of the offence and one or more offences associated with it, was so serious that a community sentence could not normally be justified for the offence.
(3) Nothing in the sections mentioned in subsection (1)(a) to (d) prevents a court—
(a) from mitigating any penalty included in an offender’s sentence by taking into account any other penalty included in that sentence, and
(b) in the case of an offender who is convicted of one or more other offences, from mitigating his sentence by applying any rule of law as to the totality of sentences.
(4) Subsections (2) and (3) are without prejudice to the generality of subsection (1).
(5) Nothing in the sections mentioned in subsection (1)(a) to (d) is to be taken—
(a) as requiring a court to pass a custodial sentence, or any particular custodial sentence, on a mentally disordered offender, or
(b) as restricting any power (whether under the Mental Health Act 1983 (c. 20) or otherwise) which enables a court to deal with such an offender in the manner it considers to be most appropriate in all the circumstances.
(6) In subsection (5) “mentally disordered”, in relation to a person, means suffering from a mental disorder within the meaning of the Mental Health Act 1983.
(1) There shall be a Sentencing Guidelines Council (in this Chapter referred to as the Council) consisting of—
(a) the Lord Chief Justice, who is to be chairman of the Council,
(b) seven members (in this section and section 168 referred to as “judicial members”) appointed by the Lord Chancellor after consultation with the Secretary of State and the Lord Chief Justice, and
(c) four members (in this section and section 168 referred to as “non-judicial members”) appointed by the Secretary of State after consultation with the Lord Chancellor and the Lord Chief Justice.
(2) A person is eligible to be appointed as a judicial member if he is—
(a) a Lord Justice of Appeal,
(b) a judge of the High Court,
(c) a Circuit judge,
(d) a District Judge (Magistrates' Courts), or
(e) a lay justice.
(3) The judicial members must include a Circuit judge, a District Judge (Magistrates' Courts) and a lay justice.
(4) A person is eligible for appointment as a non-judicial member if he appears to the Secretary of State to have experience in one or more of the following areas—
(a) policing,
(b) criminal prosecution,
(c) criminal defence, and
(d) the promotion of the welfare of victims of crime.
(5) The persons eligible for appointment as a non-judicial member by virtue of experience of criminal prosecution include the Director of Public Prosecutions.
(6) The non-judicial members must include at least one person appearing to the Secretary of State to have experience in each area.
(7) The Lord Chief Justice must appoint one of the judicial members or non-judicial members to be deputy chairman of the Council.
(8) In relation to any meeting of the Council from which the Lord Chief Justice is to be absent, he may nominate any person eligible for appointment as a judicial member to act as a member on his behalf at the meeting.
(9) The Secretary of State may appoint a person appearing to him to have experience of sentencing policy and the administration of sentences to attend and speak at any meeting of the Council.
(10) In this section and section 168 “lay justice” means a justice of the peace who is not a District Judge (Magistrates' Courts).
(1) In relation to the Council, the Lord Chancellor may by order make provision—
(a) as to the term of office, resignation and re-appointment of judicial members and non-judicial members,
(b) enabling the appropriate Minister to remove a judicial member or non-judicial member from office on grounds of incapacity or misbehaviour, and
(c) as to the proceedings of the Council.
(2) In subsection (1)(b) “the appropriate Minister” means—
(a) in relation to a judicial member, the Lord Chancellor, and
(b) in relation to a non-judicial member, the Secretary of State.
(3) The validity of anything done by the Council is not affected by any vacancy among its members, by any defect in the appointment of a member or by any failure to comply with section 167(3), (6) or (7).
(4) The Lord Chancellor may pay—
(a) to any judicial member who is appointed by virtue of being a lay justice, such remuneration or expenses as he may determine, and
(b) to any other judicial member or the Lord Chief Justice, such expenses as he may determine.
(5) The Secretary of State may pay to any non-judicial member such remuneration or expenses as he may determine.
(1) There shall continue to be a Sentencing Advisory Panel (in this Chapter referred to as “the Panel”) constituted by the Lord Chancellor after consultation with the Secretary of State and the Lord Chief Justice.
(2) The Lord Chancellor must, after consultation with the Secretary of State and the Lord Chief Justice, appoint one of the members of the Panel to be its chairman.
(3) The Lord Chancellor may pay to any member of the Panel such remuneration or expenses as he may determine.
(1) In this Chapter—
(a) “sentencing guidelines” means guidelines relating to the sentencing of offenders, which may be general in nature or limited to a particular category of offence or offender, and
(b) “allocation guidelines” means guidelines relating to decisions by a magistrates' court under section 19 of the Magistrates' Courts Act 1980 (c. 43) as to whether an offence is more suitable for summary trial or trial on indictment.
(2) The Secretary of State may at any time propose to the Council—
(a) that sentencing guidelines be framed or revised by the Council—
(i) in respect of offences or offenders of a particular category, or
(ii) in respect of a particular matter affecting sentencing, or
(b) that allocation guidelines be framed or revised by the Council.
(3) The Council may from time to time consider whether to frame sentencing guidelines or allocation guidelines and, if it receives—
(a) a proposal under section 171(2) from the Panel, or
(b) a proposal under subsection (2) from the Secretary of State,
must consider whether to do so.
(4) Where sentencing guidelines or allocation guidelines have been issued by the Council as definitive guidelines, the Council must from time to time (and, in particular, if it receives a proposal under section 171(2) from the Panel or under subsection (2) from the Secretary of State) consider whether to revise them.
(5) Where the Council decides to frame or revise sentencing guidelines, the matters to which the Council must have regard include—
(a) the need to promote consistency in sentencing,
(b) the sentences imposed by courts in England and Wales for offences to which the guidelines relate,
(c) the cost of different sentences and their relative effectiveness in preventing re-offending,
(d) the need to promote public confidence in the criminal justice system, and
(e) the views communicated to the Council, in accordance with section 171(3)(b), by the Panel.
(6) Where the Council decides to frame or revise allocation guidelines, the matters to which the Council must have regard include—
(a) the need to promote consistency in decisions under section 19 of the Magistrates' Courts Act 1980 (c. 43), and
(b) the views communicated to the Council, in accordance with section 171(3)(b), by the Panel.
(7) Sentencing guidelines in respect of an offence or category of offences must include criteria for determining the seriousness of the offence or offences, including (where appropriate) criteria for determining the weight to be given to any previous convictions of offenders.
(8) Where the Council has prepared or revised any sentencing guidelines or allocation guidelines, it must—
(a) publish them as draft guidelines, and
(b) consult about the draft guidelines—
(i) the Secretary of State,
(ii) such persons as the Lord Chancellor, after consultation with the Secretary of State, may direct, and
(iii) such other persons as the Council considers appropriate.
(9) The Council may, after making any amendment of the draft guidelines which it considers appropriate, issue the guidelines as definitive guidelines.
(1) Where the Council decides to frame or revise any sentencing guidelines or allocation guidelines, otherwise than in response to a proposal from the Panel under subsection (2), the Council must notify the Panel.
(2) The Panel may at any time propose to the Council—
(a) that sentencing guidelines be framed or revised by the Council—
(i) in respect of offences or offenders of a particular category, or
(ii) in respect of a particular matter affecting sentencing, or
(b) that allocation guidelines be framed or revised by the Council.
(3) Where the Panel receives a notification under subsection (1) or makes a proposal under subsection (2), the Panel must—
(a) obtain and consider the views on the matters in issue of such persons or bodies as may be determined, after consultation with the Secretary of State and the Lord Chancellor, by the Council, and
(b) formulate its own views on those matters and communicate them to the Council.
(4) Paragraph (a) of subsection (3) does not apply where the Council notifies the Panel of the Council’s view that the urgency of the case makes it impracticable for the Panel to comply with that paragraph.
(1) Every court must—
(a) in sentencing an offender, have regard to any guidelines which are relevant to the offender’s case, and
(b) in exercising any other function relating to the sentencing of offenders, have regard to any guidelines which are relevant to the exercise of the function.
(2) In subsection (1) “guidelines” means sentencing guidelines issued by the Council under section 170(9) as definitive guidelines, as revised by subsequent guidelines so issued.
(1) The Council must as soon as practicable after the end of each financial year make to the Ministers a report on the exercise of the Council’s functions during the year.
(2) If section 167 comes into force after the beginning of a financial year, the first report may relate to a period beginning with the day on which that section comes into force and ending with the end of the next financial year.
(3) The Ministers must lay a copy of the report before each House of Parliament.
(4) The Council must publish the report once the copy has been so laid.
(5) In this section—
“financial year” means a period of 12 months ending with 31st March;
“the Ministers” means the Secretary of State and the Lord Chancellor.
(1) Subject to subsections (3) and (4), any court passing sentence on an offender—
(a) must state in open court, in ordinary language and in general terms, its reasons for deciding on the sentence passed, and
(b) must explain to the offender in ordinary language—
(i) the effect of the sentence,
(ii) where the offender is required to comply with any order of the court forming part of the sentence, the effects of non-compliance with the order,
(iii) any power of the court, on the application of the offender or any other person, to vary or review any order of the court forming part of the sentence, and
(iv) where the sentence consists of or includes a fine, the effects of failure to pay the fine.
(2) In complying with subsection (1)(a), the court must—
(a) where guidelines indicate that a sentence of a particular kind, or within a particular range, would normally be appropriate for the offence and the sentence is of a different kind, or is outside that range, state the court’s reasons for deciding on a sentence of a different kind or outside that range,
(b) where the sentence is a custodial sentence and the duty in subsection (2) of section 152 is not excluded by subsection (1)(a) or (b) or (3) of that section, state that it is of the opinion referred to in section 152(2) and why it is of that opinion,
(c) where the sentence is a community sentence and the case does not fall within section 151(2), state that it is of the opinion that section 148(1) applies and why it is of that opinion,
(d) where as a result of taking into account any matter referred to in section 144(1), the court imposes a punishment on the offender which is less severe than the punishment it would otherwise have imposed, state that fact, and
(e) in any case, mention any aggravating or mitigating factors which the court has regarded as being of particular importance.
(3) Subsection (1)(a) does not apply—
(a) to an offence the sentence for which is fixed by law (provision relating to sentencing for such an offence being made by section 270), or
(b) to an offence the sentence for which falls to be imposed under section 51A(2) of the Firearms Act 1968 (c. 27) or under subsection (2) of section 110 or 111 of the Sentencing Act (required custodial sentences).
(4) The Secretary of State may by order—
(a) prescribe cases in which subsection (1)(a) or (b) does not apply, and
(b) prescribe cases in which the statement referred to in subsection (1)(a) or the explanation referred to in subsection (1)(b) may be made in the absence of the offender, or may be provided in written form.
(5) Where a magistrates' court passes a custodial sentence, it must cause any reason stated by virtue of subsection (2)(b) to be specified in the warrant of commitment and entered on the register.
(6) In this section—
“guidelines” has the same meaning as in section 172;
“the register” has the meaning given by section 163 of the Sentencing Act.
In section 95 of the Criminal Justice Act 1991 (c. 53) (information for financial and other purposes) in subsection (1) before the “or” at the end of paragraph (a) there is inserted—
“(aa) enabling such persons to become aware of the relative effectiveness of different sentences—
(i) in preventing re-offending, and
(ii) in promoting public confidence in the criminal justice system;”.
In this Chapter—
“allocation guidelines” has the meaning given by section 170(1)(b);
“the Council” means the Sentencing Guidelines Council;
“the Panel” means the Sentencing Advisory Panel;
“sentence” and “sentencing” are to be read in accordance with section 142(3);
“sentencing guidelines” has the meaning given by section 170(1)(a);
“youth community order” has the meaning given by section 147(2).
(1) Where a person aged 16 or over is convicted of an offence, the court by or before which he is convicted may make an order (in this Part referred to as a “community order”) imposing on him any one or more of the following requirements—
(a) an unpaid work requirement (as defined by section 199),
(b) an activity requirement (as defined by section 201),
(c) a programme requirement (as defined by section 202),
(d) a prohibited activity requirement (as defined by section 203),
(e) a curfew requirement (as defined by section 204),
(f) an exclusion requirement (as defined by section 205),
(g) a residence requirement (as defined by section 206),
(h) a mental health treatment requirement (as defined by section 207),
(i) a drug rehabilitation requirement (as defined by section 209),
(j) an alcohol treatment requirement (as defined by section 212),
(k) a supervision requirement (as defined by section 213), and
(l) in a case where the offender is aged under 25, an attendance centre requirement (as defined by section 214).
(2) Subsection (1) has effect subject to sections 150 and 218 and to the following provisions of Chapter 4 relating to particular requirements—
(a) section 199(3) (unpaid work requirement),
(b) section 201(3) and (4) (activity requirement),
(c) section 202(4) and (5) (programme requirement),
(d) section 203(2) (prohibited activity requirement),
(e) section 207(3) (mental health treatment requirement),
(f) section 209(2) (drug rehabilitation requirement), and
(g) section 212(2) and (3) (alcohol treatment requirement).
(3) Where the court makes a community order imposing a curfew requirement or an exclusion requirement, the court must also impose an electronic monitoring requirement (as defined by section 215) unless—
(a) it is prevented from doing so by section 215(2) or 218(4), or
(b) in the particular circumstances of the case, it considers it inappropriate to do so.
(4) Where the court makes a community order imposing an unpaid work requirement, an activity requirement, a programme requirement, a prohibited activity requirement, a residence requirement, a mental health treatment requirement, a drug rehabilitation requirement, an alcohol treatment requirement, a supervision requirement or an attendance centre requirement, the court may also impose an electronic monitoring requirement unless prevented from doing so by section 215(2) or 218(4).
(5) A community order must specify a date, not more than three years after the date of the order, by which all the requirements in it must have been complied with; and a community order which imposes two or more different requirements falling within subsection (1) may also specify an earlier date or dates in relation to compliance with any one or more of them.
(6) Before making a community order imposing two or more different requirements falling within subsection (1), the court must consider whether, in the circumstances of the case, the requirements are compatible with each other.
(1) The Secretary of State may by order—
(a) enable or require a court making a community order to provide for the community order to be reviewed periodically by that or another court,
(b) enable a court to amend a community order so as to include or remove a provision for review by a court, and
(c) make provision as to the timing and conduct of reviews and as to the powers of the court on a review.
(2) An order under this section may, in particular, make provision in relation to community orders corresponding to any provision made by sections 191 and 192 in relation to suspended sentence orders.
(3) An order under this section may repeal or amend any provision of this Part.
Schedule 8 (which relates to failures to comply with the requirements of community orders and to the revocation or amendment of such orders) shall have effect.
Schedule 9 (transfer of community orders to Scotland or Northern Ireland) shall have effect.
(1) Any power of a court to impose a sentence of imprisonment for a term of less than 12 months on an offender may be exercised only in accordance with the following provisions of this section unless the court makes an intermittent custody order (as defined by section 183).
(2) The term of the sentence—
(a) must be expressed in weeks,
(b) must be at least 28 weeks,
(c) must not be more than 51 weeks in respect of any one offence, and
(d) must not exceed the maximum term permitted for the offence.
(3) The court, when passing sentence, must—
(a) specify a period (in this Chapter referred to as “the custodial period”) at the end of which the offender is to be released on a licence, and
(b) by order require the licence to be granted subject to conditions requiring the offender’s compliance during the remainder of the term (in this Chapter referred to as “the licence period”) or any part of it with one or more requirements falling within section 182(1) and specified in the order.
(4) In this Part “custody plus order” means an order under subsection (3)(b).
(5) The custodial period—
(a) must be at least 2 weeks, and
(b) in respect of any one offence, must not be more than 13 weeks.
(6) In determining the term of the sentence and the length of the custodial period, the court must ensure that the licence period is at least 26 weeks in length.
(7) Where a court imposes two or more terms of imprisonment in accordance with this section to be served consecutively—
(a) the aggregate length of the terms of imprisonment must not be more than 65 weeks, and
(b) the aggregate length of the custodial periods must not be more than 26 weeks.
(8) A custody plus order which specifies two or more requirements may, in relation to any requirement, refer to compliance within such part of the licence period as is specified in the order.
(9) Subsection (3)(b) does not apply where the sentence is a suspended sentence.
(1) The requirements falling within this subsection are—
(a) an unpaid work requirement (as defined by section 199),
(b) an activity requirement (as defined by section 201),
(c) a programme requirement (as defined by section 202),
(d) a prohibited activity requirement (as defined by section 203),
(e) a curfew requirement (as defined by section 204),
(f) an exclusion requirement (as defined by section 205),
(g) a supervision requirement (as defined by section 213), and
(h) in a case where the offender is aged under 25, an attendance centre requirement (as defined by section 214).
(2) The power under section 181(3)(b) to determine the conditions of the licence has effect subject to section 218 and to the following provisions of Chapter 4 relating to particular requirements—
(a) section 199(3) (unpaid work requirement),
(b) section 201(3) and (4) (activity requirement),
(c) section 202(4) and (5) (programme requirement), and
(d) section 203(2) (prohibited activity requirement).
(3) Where the court makes a custody plus order requiring a licence to contain a curfew requirement or an exclusion requirement, the court must also require the licence to contain an electronic monitoring requirement (as defined by section 215) unless—
(a) the court is prevented from doing so by section 215(2) or 218(4), or
(b) in the particular circumstances of the case, it considers it inappropriate to do so.
(4) Where the court makes a custody plus order requiring a licence to contain an unpaid work requirement, an activity requirement, a programme requirement, a prohibited activity requirement, a supervision requirement or an attendance centre requirement, the court may also require the licence to contain an electronic monitoring requirement unless the court is prevented from doing so by section 215(2) or 218(4).
(5) Before making a custody plus order requiring a licence to contain two or more different requirements falling within subsection (1), the court must consider whether, in the circumstances of the case, the requirements are compatible with each other.
(1) A court may, when passing a sentence of imprisonment for a term complying with subsection (4)—
(a) specify the number of days that the offender must serve in prison under the sentence before being released on licence for the remainder of the term, and
(b) by order—
(i) specify periods during which the offender is to be released temporarily on licence before he has served that number of days in prison, and
(ii) require any licence to be granted subject to conditions requiring the offender’s compliance during the licence periods with one or more requirements falling within section 182(1) and specified in the order.
(2) In this Part “intermittent custody order” means an order under subsection (1)(b).
(3) In this Chapter—
Criminal Justice Act 2003