The defendant had been convicted of murder in Scotland. He requested a transfer to an English prison. The trial judge recommended a tariff of eight years which was eventually set at 12 years by the respondent. That figure also exceeded the maximum recommended by the English judges who had reviewed the sentence. He complained that this infringed his article 7 right, since the penalty was higher than it would have been in Scotland. The Scottish tariff had been recommended but not set before his transfer.
Held: There were differences between the Scottish and English systems for setting the tariffs, but the transfer applied the English system. The true sentence was one of life imprisonment. The applicant’s article 7 rights were not affected and the application for judicial review failed.
Judges:
Lord Justice Scott Baker And Mr Justice Pitchford
Citations:
[2003] EWHC 1542 (Admin), CO/4937/2002, Times 28-Jul-2003, Gazette 11-Sep-2003
Links:
Statutes:
Criminal Justice Act 1961 26(1), European Convention on Human Rights 7.1
Jurisdiction:
England and Wales
Citing:
Cited – Welch v United Kingdom ECHR 15-Feb-1995
The applicant was convicted in 1988 of drug offences committed in 1986. The judge passed a sentence of imprisonment but imposed a confiscation order pursuant to an Act that came into force in l987.
Held: The concept of penalty in Article 7 was . .
Cited – H v United Kingdom ECHR 1985
The applicant was sentenced to life imprisonment in 1973 for committing a murder in the course of a robbery.
Held: The penalty for this offence at the time it was committed was life imprisonment and thus no issue under Art. 7 (art. 7) arises . .
Cited – Regina (Uttley) v Secretary of State for the Home Department Admn 8-Apr-2003
The court had to consider consider whether the application of statutory provisions requiring a prisoner to be released on licence, that were not applicable at the date of the offence, violated Article 7. The claimant had been sentenced to 12 years’ . .
Cited – Coeme and others v Belgium ECHR 22-Jun-2000
The mischief that Article 7 is designed to prevent is the imposition by the State of (i) criminal liability for an act which did not attract such liability at the time it was committed or (ii) a penalty greater than the maximum permitted when the . .
Cited – Regina v Secretary of State for the Home Department Ex parte Anderson HL 25-Nov-2002
The appellant had been convicted of double murder. The judge imposed a mandatory life sentence with a minimum recommended term. The Home Secretary had later increased the minimum term under the 1997 Act. The appellant challenged that increase.
Cited by:
Cited – Regina v R (Sentencing: Extended licences) CACD 25-Jul-2003
The imposition of an extended period of licence in respect of offences committed before 1992 did not infringe the defendant’s human rights. The defendant had been convicted of offences from 1976 and 1982. The commencement date for the 1991 Act was 1 . .
Lists of cited by and citing cases may be incomplete.
Criminal Sentencing, Human Rights
Updated: 08 May 2022; Ref: scu.184085