The court construed section 58 of the 1998 Act, looking at the requirement for a sex offender to register under section 1 of the Sexual Offenders Act 1997. The length of the registration obligation is determined by the length of the term of imprisonment to which the offender is sentenced.
Held: ‘It is to be noted that although the word ‘custodial’ is used in relation to subparagraph (b) . . this does not necessarily imply a period of imprisonment. It merely denotes a period during which an offender is liable to be imprisoned if he is discovered to be in breach of the licence.
That must be compared with section 1 of the Sex Offenders Act 1997, which sets outs in tabular form the applicable period for which any person convicted of a sexual case is required to register and to notify the appropriate authorities. In relation to the sentence of imprisonment which is passed, the appropriate wording of the table is:
‘A person who, in the respect of the offence, is or has been sentenced to imprisonment for a term of more than six months, but less than 30 months.’ We note the difference between the phrase ‘custodial sentence’ and the phrase a ‘term of imprisonment’. It seems to us that on the plain construction of the latter the term of imprisonment denotes actual and immediate imprisonment and does not include a sentence of extended licence during which he is liable to be imprisoned, but not necessarily be so.’
Citations:
[2001] 1 Cr App R(S) 335
Statutes:
Crime and Disorder Act 1998 58, Sexual Offenders Act 1997 1
Jurisdiction:
England and Wales
Cited by:
Per incuriam – Wiles, Regina v CACD 4-Mar-2004
The defendant appealed against the imposition of an extended sentence under the 2000 Act for conviction involving sexual assault on a child and the possession of indecent photographs of children. The pre-sentence report spoke of his lack of insight . .
Lists of cited by and citing cases may be incomplete.
Criminal Sentencing
Updated: 11 May 2022; Ref: scu.463744
