28-day limit on sentence reviews is a 'barrier'

The families of serious crime victims should have more time to request sentences to be reviewed, an MP has said.

The Unduly Lenient Sentence (ULS) scheme allows anyone to ask for certain crown court sentences to be reviewed if they think the sentence is too low.

Blackpool North and Fleetwood Labour MP, Lorraine Beavers, told the Commons the 28-day limit for cases to be referred is "a barrier", highlighting the campaign of constituent Katie Brett, whose sister Sarah Marsden was 16 when she was "brutally murdered, raped and then set on fire".

Conservative MP Sir Ashley Fox agreed that the 28-day period is "too short" and that many victims "just need more time to consider their legal position".

Beavers said "the sheer horror" of the Sarah Marsden case "is beyond words".

"The pain her family lives with every single day is unimaginable to most of us, and yet, after enduring the traumatic trial and the devastation of their loss, Katie and her family were faced with another injustice," she said.

"They had 28 days to challenge the sentence they believed did not reflect the severity of the crime.

"What is worse, they weren't even told that they had this right."

Beavers added: "For the family of a victim, the trial of the perpetrator is always traumatising, but in cases like these, where Sasha's family heard the brutal details of her murder for the first time at that trial, most of us would not be emotionally ready to fight another fight and understand the complex legal processes within 28 days of hearing the sentence.

"Twenty-eight days to grieve, 28 days to understand the complex legal system, 28 days to find the strength to fight once more.

"This is not a meaningful right. This is a barrier.

"Katie is asking for something perfectly reasonable: more time for victims' families to seek a review of sentences that they believe are unduly lenient."

Beavers said she understands the government's concerns that there must still be an end date placed on the longer deadline, but urged the government to "ensure that the issue is revisited".

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