The Criminal Cases Review Commission (CCRC) has referred the indefinite sentences of five men for appeal, all of whom were sentenced under the imprisonment for public protection (IPP) scheme or its equivalent for children, detention for public protection (DPP). The decision follows recent Court of Appeal rulings that quashed similar sentences where young age and maturity were not properly considered.
IPPs were introduced in 2005 to detain serious offenders deemed a risk to the public, and DPPs applied to under-18s. Both were abolished in 2012 but not retrospectively. Critics, including former Supreme Court justice Lord Brown and former Home Secretary David Blunkett, have condemned the sentences for leaving individuals imprisoned for long periods, often for minor offences.
The five cases involve men who were young at sentencing, with minimum tariffs of three and a half years or less, yet all remain in prison over 15 years later. The CCRC chair, Dame Vera Baird KC, stated that recent appeal judgments provide an opportunity to help others in similar circumstances, noting the commission receives an average of 16 IPP or DPP cases monthly and has 110 under review.
The individuals referred are Benjamin Hibbert (sentenced 2009, aged 15-16, for sexual assault), Stuart O'Neill (2009, aged 20, for rape), Jay Davis (2006, aged 19, for firearm possession), Luke Ings (2006, aged 17, for robbery and battery), and James Ward (2006, aged 20, for arson). Hibbert, O'Neill, and Davis's cases go to the Court of Appeal; Ings and Ward's to the Crown Court. Even if released, IPP and DPP offenders remain on indefinite licence and can be recalled for non-criminal behaviour.
