May 9, 2005: ‘Manslaughter By Reason Of Provocation’: New Draft Guidelines

The Sentencing Guidelines Council (SGC) has published draft guidelines for judges dealing with cases where offenders are found guilty of manslaughter rather than murder, on the basis they were severely provoked. The draft guidelines have been subject to extensive consultation. They were drawn up following a reference from the former Home Secretary, David Blunkett, and aim to address his concern that sentences in such cases should reflect the seriousness of the offence and the loss of life.

The SGC guidelines recommend that, in most cases, even the victims of domestic violence should expect to go to prison if they kill someone, but acknowledge that such offences should be treated quite differently to murder, which carries a mandatory life sentence.

The SGC proposes starting points for sentences of between 3-12 years imprisonment. Recognising that individual circumstances will vary considerably, the Council recommends that judges take account of the nature and length of the provocation suffered (including actual abuse inflicted by the victim) in setting sentences.

The Council acknowledges that women and men who are themselves – or whose children are - subject to continual violence may experience a “slow-burn” reaction. It also says that the use of a weapon may - in some circumstances - reflect the imbalance in strength between the offender and the victim, rather than be an aggravating factor.

Commenting on the draft guidelines, the Lord Chief Justice Lord Woolf, who chairs the SGC, said:

“This is a very difficult area in which to be prescriptive, as the individual, tragic circumstances of each case vary considerably. In responding to the call for guidelines in this area, we have had to strike a difficult balance between, on the one hand, recognising the sanctity of human life while, on the other, acknowledging the appalling plight of women and men who find themselves and their children trapped in abusive relationships.”

Council member, Chief Constable Peter Neyroud, added:

“We hope by publishing these guidelines in draft, we will be able to have the benefit of further views, before we finalise our recommendations. We will continue to listen carefully to all the feedback that we get.”

The SGC is an independent body comprising members of the judiciary, police, legal professions and those with substantial experience of promoting the interests of victims. It is chaired by the Lord Chief Justice, with seven other members from the judiciary and four members who between them bring experience of policing, criminal prosecution, criminal defence, and the interests of victims of crime. Judicial members were appointed by the Lord Chancellor. The non-judicial appointments were made by the Home Secretary.

Meetings of the Council are also attended by National Offender Management Service Chief Executive Martin Narey and by Sentencing Advisory Panel Chair Professor Martin Wasik.