Explosive Substances (Terrorism only) - for consultation only

A

• Offender caused an explosion or used, developed or was in possession of a viable explosive device
• Acting alone, or in a leading role, in terrorist activity involving explosives, where preparations were complete or were so close to completion that, but for apprehension, the activity was very likely to have been carried out

B

• Offender took significant steps towards creating an explosion or developing or obtaining a viable explosive device
• Acting alone, or in a leading role, in terrorist activity involving explosives where preparations were advanced and, but for apprehension, the activity was likely to have been carried out
• Significant role in terrorist activity involving explosives where preparations were complete or were so close to completion that, but for apprehension, the activity was very likely to have been carried out

C

• Leading role in terrorist activity involving explosives where preparations were not far advanced
• Significant role in terrorist activity involving explosives where preparations were advanced and, but for apprehension, the activity was likely to have been carried out
• Lesser role in terrorist activity involving explosives where preparations were complete or were so close to completion that, but for apprehension, the activity was very likely to have been carried out
• Act(s) of significant assistance or encouragement of other(s) involved in causing, developing or possessing an explosive device (where not falling within A or B)

D

• Offender took very limited steps toward creating an explosion or developing or obtaining a viable explosive device
• Offender has engaged in very limited preparation of terrorist activity involving explosives
• Act(s) of lesser assistance or encouragement of other(s)
• Other cases not falling within A, B or C

Category 1

• Multiple deaths risked and very likely to be caused

Category 2

• Multiple deaths risked but not very likely to be caused
• Any death risked and very likely to be caused

Category 3

• Any death risked but not very likely to be caused
• Risk of widespread or serious damage to property or economic interests
• Risk of a substantial impact upon civic infrastructure
• Any other cases

Statutory aggravating factors

• Previous convictions,

  Effective from: 01 October 2019

  Care should be taken to avoid double counting factors including those already taken into account in assessing culpability or harm or those inherent in the offence

  Guidance on the use of previous convictions

  The following guidance should be considered when seeking to determine the degree to which previous convictions should aggravate sentence:

  Section 65 of the Sentencing Code states that:

  (1) This section applies where a court is considering the seriousness of an offence (“the current offence”) committed by an offender who has one or more relevant previous convictions.

  (2) The court must treat as an aggravating factor each relevant previous conviction that it considers can reasonably be so treated, having regard in particular to— (a) the nature of the offence to which the conviction relates and its relevance to the current offence, and (b) the time that has elapsed since the conviction.

  (3) Where the court treats a relevant previous conviction as an aggravating factor under subsection (2) it must state in open court that the offence is so aggravated.

  1. Previous convictions are considered at step two in the Council’s offence-specific guidelines.
  2. The primary significance of previous convictions (including convictions in other jurisdictions) is the extent to which they indicate trends in offending behaviour and possibly the offender’s response to earlier sentences.
  3. Previous convictions are normally of relevance to the current offence when they are of a similar type.
  4. Previous convictions of a type different from the current offence may be of relevance where they are an indication of persistent offending or escalation and/or a failure to comply with previous court orders.
  5. Numerous and frequent previous convictions might indicate an underlying problem (for example, an addiction) that could be addressed more effectively in the community and will not necessarily indicate that a custodial sentence is necessary.
  6. If the offender received a non-custodial disposal for the previous offence, a court should not necessarily move to a custodial sentence for the fresh offence.
  7. In cases involving significant persistent offending, the community and custody thresholds may be crossed even though the current offence normally warrants a lesser sentence. If a custodial sentence is imposed it should be proportionate and kept to the necessary minimum.
  8. The aggravating effect of relevant previous convictions reduces with the passage of time; older convictions are of less relevance to the offender’s culpability for the current offence and less likely to be predictive of future offending.
  9. Where the previous offence is particularly old it will normally have little relevance for the current sentencing exercise.
  10. The court should consider the time gap since the previous conviction and the reason for it. Where there has been a significant gap between previous and current convictions or a reduction in the frequency of offending this may indicate that the offender has made attempts to desist from offending in which case the aggravating effect of the previous offending will diminish.
  11. Where the current offence is significantly less serious than the previous conviction (suggesting a decline in the gravity of offending), the previous conviction may carry less weight.
  12. When considering the totality of previous offending a court should take a rounded view of the previous crimes and not simply aggregate the individual offences.
  13. Where information is available on the context of previous offending this may assist the court in assessing the relevance of that prior offending to the current offence
  having regard to a) the nature of the offence to which the conviction relates and its relevance to the current offence; and b) the time that has elapsed since the conviction
• Offence committed whilst on bail

  Effective from: 01 October 2019

  Care should be taken to avoid double counting factors including those already taken into account in assessing culpability or harm or those inherent in the offence

  Section 64 of the Sentencing Code states:

  In considering the seriousness of any offence committed while the offender was on bail, the court must - (a) treat the fact that it was committed in those circumstances as an aggravating factor and (b) state in open court that the offence is so aggravated.  

• Offence motivated by, or demonstrating hostility based on any of the following characteristics or presumed characteristics of the victim: religion, race, disability, sexual orientation or transgender identity

  Effective from: 01 October 2019

  Care should be taken to avoid double counting factors including those already taken into account in assessing culpability or harm or those inherent in the offence

  See below for the statutory provisions.

  • Note the requirement for the court to state that the offence has been aggravated by the relevant hostility.
  • Where the element of hostility is core to the offending, the aggravation will be higher than where it plays a lesser role.

  Section 66 of the Sentencing Code states:

  Hostility (1) This section applies where a court is considering the seriousness of an offence which is aggravated by—

  (a) racial hostility,

  (b) religious hostility,

  (c) hostility related to disability,

  (d) hostility related to sexual orientation, or

  (e) hostility related to transgender identity.

  This is subject to subsection (3). (2) The court—

  (a) must treat the fact that the offence is aggravated by hostility of any of those types as an aggravating factor, and

  (b) must state in open court that the offence is so aggravated.

  (3) So far as it relates to racial and religious hostility, this section does not apply in relation to an offence under sections 29 to 32 of the Crime and Disorder Act 1998 (racially or religiously aggravated offences). (4) For the purposes of this section, an offence is aggravated by hostility of one of the kinds mentioned in subsection (1) if—

  (a) at the time of committing the offence, or immediately before or after doing so, the offender demonstrated towards the victim of the offence hostility based on—

  (i) the victim’s membership (or presumed membership) of a racial group,

  (ii) the victim’s membership (or presumed membership) of a religious group,

  (iii) a disability (or presumed disability) of the victim,

  (iv) the sexual orientation (or presumed sexual orientation) of the victim, or (as the case may be)

  (v) the victim being (or being presumed to be) transgender, or

  (b) the offence was motivated (wholly or partly) by—

  (i) hostility towards members of a racial group based on their membership of that group,

  (ii) hostility towards members of a religious group based on their membership of that group,

  (iii) hostility towards persons who have a disability or a particular disability,

  (iv) hostility towards persons who are of a particular sexual orientation, or (as the case may be)

  (v) hostility towards persons who are transgender.

  (5) For the purposes of paragraphs (a) and (b) of subsection (4), it is immaterial whether or not the offender’s hostility is also based, to any extent, on any other factor not mentioned in that paragraph. (6) In this section—

  (a) references to a racial group are to a group of persons defined by reference to race, colour, nationality (including citizenship) or ethnic or national origins;

  (b) references to a religious group are to a group of persons defined by reference to religious belief or lack of religious belief;

  (c) “membership” in relation to a racial or religious group, includes association with members of that group;

  (d) “disability” means any physical or mental impairment;

  (e) references to being transgender include references to being transsexual, or undergoing, proposing to undergo or having undergone a process or part of a process of gender reassignment;

  (f) “presumed” means presumed by the offender.

   

  (When considering this factor, sentencers should bear in mind the statutory definition of terrorism in section 1 of the Terrorism Act 2000, and should be careful to avoid double counting)

Other aggravating factors

• Recent and/or repeated possession or accessing of extremist material
• Communication with other extremists
• Deliberate use of encrypted communications or similar technologies to facilitate the commission of the offence and/or avoid or impede detection
• Offender attempted to disguise their identity to prevent detection
• Indoctrinated or encouraged others
• Failure to respond to warnings
• Failure to comply with current court orders

  Effective from: 01 October 2019

  Care should be taken to avoid double counting factors including those already taken into account in assessing culpability or harm or those inherent in the offence

  • Commission of an offence while subject to a relevant court order makes the offence more serious.
  • The extent to which the offender has complied with the conditions of an order (including the time that has elapsed since its commencement) will be a relevant consideration.
  • Where the offender is dealt with separately for a breach of an order regard should be had to totality
  • Care should be taken to avoid double counting matters taken into account when considering previous convictions.

  When sentencing young adult offenders (typically aged 18-25), consideration should also be given to the guidance on the mitigating factor relating to age and/or lack of maturity when considering the significance of this factor.

• Offence committed on licence or Post Sentence Supervision

  Effective from: 01 October 2019

  Care should be taken to avoid double counting factors including those already taken into account in assessing culpability or harm or those inherent in the offence

  • An offender who is subject to licence or post sentence supervision is under a particular obligation to desist from further offending.
  • The extent to which the offender has complied with the conditions of a licence or order (including the time that has elapsed since its commencement) will be a relevant consideration.
  • Where the offender is dealt with separately for a breach of a licence or order regard should be had to totality.
  • Care should be taken to avoid double counting matters taken into account when considering previous convictions.

  When sentencing young adult offenders (typically aged 18-25), consideration should also be given to the guidance on the mitigating factor relating to age and/or lack of maturity when considering the significance of this factor.

• Offence committed whilst in prison

Heading of a section 1

• No previous convictions or no relevant/recent convictions

  Effective from: 01 October 2019

  Care should be taken to avoid double counting factors including those already taken into account in assessing culpability or harm
  

  • First time offenders usually represent a lower risk of reoffending. Reoffending rates for first offenders are significantly lower than rates for repeat offenders. In addition, first offenders are normally regarded as less blameworthy than offenders who have committed the same crime several times already. For these reasons first offenders receive a mitigated sentence.
  • Where there are previous offences but these are old and /or are for offending of a different nature, the sentence will normally be reduced to reflect that the new offence is not part of a pattern of offending and there is therefore a lower likelihood of reoffending.
  • When assessing whether a previous conviction is ‘recent’ the court should consider the time gap since the previous conviction and the reason for it. 
  • Previous convictions are likely to be ‘relevant’ when they share characteristics with the current offence (examples of such characteristics include, but are not limited to: dishonesty, violence, abuse of position or trust, use or possession of weapons, disobedience of court orders).  In general the more serious the previous offending the longer it will retain relevance.
• Good character and/or exemplary conduct

  Effective from: 01 October 2019

  Care should be taken to avoid double counting factors including those already taken into account in assessing culpability or harm

  This factor may apply whether or not the offender has previous convictions.  Evidence that an offender has demonstrated positive good character through, for example, charitable works may reduce the sentence. 

  However, this factor is less likely to be relevant where the offending is very serious.  Where an offender has used their good character or status to facilitate or conceal the offending it could be treated as an aggravating factor.

• Offender involved through coercion, intimidation or exploitation

  Effective from: 01 October 2019

  Care should be taken to avoid double counting factors including those already taken into account in assessing culpability or harm

  • Where this applies it will reduce the culpability of the offender.
  • This factor may be of particular relevance where the offender has been the victim of domestic abuse, trafficking or modern slavery, but may also apply in other contexts.
  • Courts should be alert to factors that suggest that an offender may have been the subject of coercion, intimidation or exploitation which the offender may find difficult to articulate, and where appropriate ask for this to be addressed in a PSR.
  • This factor may indicate that the offender is vulnerable and would find it more difficult to cope with custody or to complete a community order.
• Clear evidence of a change of mind set prior to arrest
• Offender’s responsibility substantially reduced by mental disorder or learning disability

  Effective from: 01 October 2020

  Care should be taken to avoid double counting factors including those already taken into account in assessing culpability or harm or those inherent in the offence

  Refer to the Sentencing offenders with mental disorders, developmental disorders, or neurological impairments guideline.

  Note in particular paragraph 5 for Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic offenders.

• Age and/or lack of maturity where it affects the responsibility of the offender

  Effective from: 01 October 2019

  Care should be taken to avoid double counting factors including those already taken into account in assessing culpability or harm

  Age and/or lack of maturity can affect:

  • the offender’s responsibility for the offence and
  • the effect of the sentence on the offender.

  Either or both of these considerations may justify a reduction in the sentence.

  The emotional and developmental age of an offender is of at least equal importance to their chronological age (if not greater). 

  In particular young adults (typically aged 18-25) are still developing neurologically and consequently may be less able to:

  • evaluate the consequences of their actions
  • limit impulsivity
  • limit risk taking

  Young adults are likely to be susceptible to peer pressure and are more likely to take risks or behave impulsively when in company with their peers.

  Immaturity can also result from atypical brain development. Environment plays a role in neurological development and factors such as adverse childhood experiences including deprivation and/or abuse may affect development.

  An immature offender may find it particularly difficult to cope with custody and therefore may be more susceptible to self-harm in custody.

  An immature offender may find it particularly difficult to cope with the requirements of a community order without appropriate support.

  There is a greater capacity for change in immature offenders and they may be receptive to opportunities to address their offending behaviour and change their conduct.

  Many young people who offend either stop committing crime, or begin a process of stopping, in their late teens and early twenties.  Therefore a young adult’s previous convictions may not be indicative of a tendency for further offending.

  Where the offender is a care leaver the court should enquire as to any effect a sentence may have on the offender’s ability to make use of support from the local authority. (Young adult care leavers are entitled to time limited support. Leaving care services may change at the age of 21 and cease at the age of 25, unless the young adult is in education at that point). See also the Sentencing Children and Young People Guideline (paragraphs 1.16 and 1.17).

  Where an offender has turned 18 between the commission of the offence and conviction the court should take as its starting point the sentence likely to have been imposed on the date at which the offence was committed, but applying the purposes of sentencing adult offenders. See also the Sentencing Children and Young People Guideline (paragraphs 6.1 to 6.3).

  When considering a custodial or community sentence for a young adult the Probation Service should address these issues in a PSR.

• Sole or primary carer for dependent relatives

  Effective from: 01 October 2019

  Care should be taken to avoid double counting factors including those already taken into account in assessing culpability or harm

  This factor is particularly relevant where an offender is on the cusp of custody or where the suitability of a community order is being considered.  See also the Imposition of community and custodial sentences guideline.

  For offenders on the cusp of custody, imprisonment should not be imposed where there would be an impact on dependants which would make a custodial sentence disproportionate to achieving the aims of sentencing.

  Where custody is unavoidable consideration of the impact on dependants may be relevant to the length of the sentence imposed and whether the sentence can be suspended.

  For more serious offences where a substantial period of custody is appropriate, this factor will carry less weight.

  ­When imposing a community sentence on an offender with primary caring responsibilities the effect on dependants must be considered in determining suitable requirements.

  In addition when sentencing an offender who is pregnant relevant considerations may include:

  • any effect of the sentence on the health of the offender and
  • any effect of the sentence on the unborn child

  The court should ensure that it has all relevant information about dependent children before deciding on sentence.

  When an immediate custodial sentence is necessary, the court must consider whether proper arrangements have been made for the care of any dependent children and if necessary consider adjourning sentence for this to be done.

  When considering a community or custodial sentence for an offender who has, or may have, caring responsibilities the court should ask the Probation Service to address these issues in a PSR.

  Useful information can be found in the Equal Treatment Bench Book (see in particular Chapter 6 paragraphs 131 to 137)