UK to make life sentences mandatory for worst murderers

LONDON, Aug 26 (Reuters) – The British government said on Saturday judges will be required to impose mandatory “life warrants” on murderers who commit the most horrendous types of murder, meaning they will die in prison, under planned legislation. .

He said the change would protect the public from the most dangerous criminals by placing a legal expectation on judges to issue warrants except in extremely limited circumstances.

Putting the sentencing guidelines on a legal basis would also give judges greater confidence to issue orders without risk of challenge in the Courts of Appeal.

For the first time, the warrants will also be the default sentence for any sexually motivated murder, he said.

Life sentences are rare: 65 prisoners were subject to one as of June 30, according to the Sentencing Council for England and Wales, which publishes guidelines on punishment.

Nurse Lucy Letby, Britain’s most prolific serial child killer of modern times, who murdered seven babies in a hospital, received a on Monday.

“By imposing mandatory life warrants on heinous criminals who commit the most horrendous types of murder, we will ensure that they never go free,” said Prime Minister Rishi Sunak.

Since the 1980s, the British Home Secretary could decide how long a life sentence prisoner would have to be held before parole could be considered.

But that was successfully challenged in 2002, on the grounds that punishment should be decided by an independent tribunal – a court – and not by a politician.

Currently, a judge specifies the minimum period an offender must spend in prison before being eligible to apply for parole when serving a life sentence.

If released, the offender will remain on license for the rest of his life and can be called to prison if he is ever deemed to pose a risk to the public.

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