Attorney General Lord Richard Hermer has referred the case to the Court of Appeal in London. Photo / Getty Images
Three teenage boys in the UK who were spared jail after being convicted of rape will have their “unduly lenient” sentences reviewed.
Lord Hermer, the Attorney-General, has referred the case to the Court of Appeal to determine whether their sentences should be increased.
The move follows a backlash against the decision to give the three boys non-custodial sentences for raping two lone girls and filming the attacks in Fordingbridge, Hampshire.
Announcing the decision, Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer said the referral to the Court of Appeal was “clearly the right outcome”. Starmer has previously said the attacks were “appalling” and backed a review of the sentences.
He said: “I think it’s a really distressing case. I think it’s distressing for everybody to see, to hear about.” The courage, frankly, of the girls to come forward is humbling, but it is distressing. I find it distressing as a politician. I find it distressing as a father.”
Among those who called for a review of the sentences was Darren Jones, the Chief Secretary to the Prime Minister, who acknowledged that he was worried about the message such sentences sent to boys and young men.
Dame Rachel de Souza, the children’s commissioner, and Donna Jones, the policing chief for the area, also backed the family’s call for the sentences to be reviewed by the Court of Appeal. Jess Phillips, the former Home Office minister, had criticised the sentences as unduly lenient.
In a statement, the family of one of the girls who called for the referral thanked the public for the “overwhelming support” and welcomed the announcement.
“Our hope is that the initial sentence will be overturned and the correct punitive sentence handed out. We also hope that moving forward it serves as a message to judges, be sure the sentence fits the crime…. No excuses,” they said.
The girls were assaulted in November 2024 and January last year by the two boys, both now aged 15. In the second attack, the girl was raped at knifepoint.
A third boy, now aged 14, was also convicted for his involvement in the second attack and received a non-custodial sentence.
The two 15-year-olds received youth rehabilitation orders from Judge Nicholas Rowland, who ruled that the pair were very young, possessed “low intellectual capacity” and suffered from ADHD.
He added that he wanted to “avoid criminalising these children unnecessarily”.
At the weekend, one of the girls said hearing the judge’s decision was like taking “a rock straight in my face”. She said she and her family wanted the sentences to be changed and the boys sent to jail, saying the sentences amounted to a “slap on the wrist”.
“Why did I sit and put myself through the pain of going to court, going through a trial, reliving everything because of evidence and watching it all happen again?” the girl asked.
Gisele Pelicot also joined criticism of the judge’s decision. The French rape survivor, whose husband repeatedly drugged her unconscious and invited dozens of men to rape her, said she was “deeply shocked” that the boys had gained their freedom when the victims would “never be able to heal”.
‘Government will not hesitate in taking action’
Lord Hermer acknowledged there had been “a huge amount of public interest, and concern, at this horrific case”.
The Attorney-General said: “I directed my officials to work urgently, to allow me to consider this decision swiftly, and to begin to bring closure to the victims and their families. It is clear to me from their powerful personal statements, that these girls have displayed immense bravery in coming forward.
“There is an epidemic of violence against women and girls in this country, and this government will not hesitate in taking action to ensure all women and girls feel safe and have confidence in the justice system.”
During sentencing, one of the 15-year-old boys was handed a three-year youth rehabilitation order with 180 days of intensive supervision and surveillance for the rape of each of the two girls and two indecent images charges. He posted footage of the attack on social media.
The court heard he had been diagnosed with ADHD and “long-standing anxiety”.
A second 15-year-old was given the same sentence for three charges of rape against each of the two victims and four counts of taking indecent images in relation to filming the incidents. The court was told he had an IQ of the “bottom 1% of his contemporaries” and had been diagnosed with ADHD.
A third boy, 14, was given a youth rehabilitation order for 18 months for two charges of rape in the January incident by encouraging the second defendant and an offence of indecent images.
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