Appeals extend 52 jail sentences

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More than 50 criminals had their sentences increased last year after they were found to be "unduly lenient", the Attorney General's Office has said.

In 2008, concerns were raised about 278 sentences handed down in England and Wales and 52 were later increased.

Attorney General Baroness Scotland said sometimes "punishment fails to fit the crime and damages public confidence".

Lord Justice Thomas, deputy head of Criminal Justice, said the figures showed the review system was working.

In 2007, 342 cases were drawn to the attention of the Attorney General for consideration and 75 offenders eventually saw their jail terms increased.

Minimum term

Most sentences reviewed by the Attorney General are referred by the Crown Prosecution Service, but victims of crime, their families, MPs and members of the public can also raise their concerns.

If the Court of Appeal agrees a sentence is too lenient it has the power to quash it and impose a higher one.

It is also able to increase the minimum amount of time ordered to be served under an indeterminate sentence.

It is important that this safeguard is built into the criminal justice system Attorney General Baroness Scotland

In some cases, the Court of Appeal may find the sentence too lenient but decide not to increase it - for instance, because an offender has already made good progress under the original punishment regime.

Among the sentences increased in 2008 were those for five murders, 11 sex offences and 12 robberies.

Some of the individuals concerned were:

<ul class="bulletList" ><li>Daniel Gordon, who had a four-year jail term increased to an indeterminate sentence with a five-year minimum for violent attacks on two women in the West Midlands </li><li>Daltery Pearson, who had his five-year sentence doubled, after he caused a fatal crash while drink driving on Tyneside </li><li>Barry Spinks, whose punishment was raised from three years in prison to five after he stabbed a man on the top deck of a bus in north London </li></ul>

80,000 cases

Baroness Scotland said: "These cases are rare, but it is important that this safeguard is built into the criminal justice system, to enable the court to increase a sentence which is so lenient that the punishment fails to fit the crime and damages public confidence."

Solicitor General Vera Baird QC added: "Equally, if we believe the sentence is not unduly lenient once we have seen all the facts, we will explain why."

Speaking on behalf of the judiciary in England and Wales, Lord Justice Thomas said it was important to put the figures in context.

He pointed out that the sentences reconsidered were just a small fraction of the 80,000 or so cases dealt with in crown courts each year.

But he said: "The figures published today show that the system for the Court of Appeal to deal with unduly lenient sentences is working.

"The Attorney General's power to ask the Court of Appeal to examine sentences which she thinks are unduly lenient is an important part of her independent role in representing the public interest.

"The Court of Appeal also decides many cases where people convicted of criminal offences argue that their sentences are too severe."