How long will he get for G.B.H with intent with a history already????

[michealson]

my best friend has got him self in alot of trouble, He has already got previous:common assult x 2 and G.B.H with a hammer leading to him being put in YOI for 18 months at the age of 16. Now 19 him and friend got in a fight with a male and he attacked him with a beer can resulting in the male having a broken nose,eye socket and jaw. He is currently in remanded custody.Whats going to happend????? I would be very grateful if anyone could help! cheers

[paddywak]

Totaly agree with Zac, unfortunatly in this society he will probably be given legal aid to sue his victim for getting in the way of his beer can, insead of the 5-10yrs min he deserves

[Buenchico]

(2-part post):

The guideline 'starting point' for "wounding or GBH
involving the use of a weapon that came to hand at the scene" is 5 years imprisonment. Unless there are exceptional circumstances, judges are expected to impose a sentence in the range of 4 to 6 years.

However, those guidelines refer to a first-time offender convicted after a trial. An early guilty plea should result in a reduction in the sentence but this will largely be cancelled out by the previous convictions. So a sentence of around 4 to 5 years imprisonment would seem to be likely.


However, the judge might take the view that more weight should be given to the previous convictions, together with the possibility that the guy might re-offend in the future. While it's unlikely that he'd pass a life sentence, per se, it's quite possible that he'd decide upon an 'IPP' sentence. ("In the interests of public protection"). Such a sentence is effectively the same as a life sentence. (The only principal difference is that, after release, someone convicted of a life sentence remains 'on licence' for the rest of their life, whereas an offender sentenced to an IPP can eventually come to the end of their licence period)..

[Buenchico]

If an IPP sentence is given, the length of that sentence is indeterminate. However, like a life sentence, the judge sets a 'tariff' which determines when the offender might be released. Given the number of previous convictions, the judge might decide upon an IPP sentence, with a tariff of, say, 5 years. That would mean that the offender would remain in prison for at least 5 years, after which he would only be eligible for release if the authorities believed that he no longer presented a risk to society.

Prison reform groups have recently been campaigning for the increased availability of suitable courses in prisons, for people given IPP sentences. As things stand, such prisoners can't be considered for release until they've satisfactorily completed the relevant courses, but many prisoners find that the courses aren't available to them. This means that many people sentenced to IPPs stand no chance of getting out of prison until many years until after their tariff ends, if at all.

Chris

[Martiens]

He should be permanently handcuffed and work as a stamp licker. It's just a question of time before he kills someone!