Wayne Couzens to appeal whole life tariff

[mbosnz]

Has this piece of filth no shame? Deities rot him.

Lockheart
I dont disagree but if Couzens is let out at 83 he poses no real danger to anyone.
Danyal at 54 almost certainly does.

@IHateCoronavirus

Selfish, sick, twisted, fuck.

Glad you said it. Saves me. The C word was invented for this creature.

Honestly, it was never going to be something he’d not do.

It’s part of his make up.

We shouldn’t be surprised.

@MissChanandlerBong81

He has nothing to lose I suppose! But I’d be astonished if he were even granted permission to appeal, let alone successful on appeal.

I wish he hadn't appealed because I think it will be traumatic for Sarah Everard's family and it's a sign that he hasn't accepted the seriousness of his crime.

However, I'd expect permission to appeal to be granted as the whole life tariff in these circumstances breaks new legal ground and so it's a normal part of the legal process to have a new precedent like this tested.

I read the sentencing judge's judgment and I thought the reasoning behind the whole life tariff was well argued. I'd be surprised if the appeal succeeded.

This was to be expected the lovely defence lawyers after more money and he has sod all else to do all day.
I doubt it will get beyond the application stage.
Suppose he will be on rule 43 too.not that that stops anything happening.
Her family would have been told this was likely.
Scum that he is.

On the criticism of defence lawyers, my expectation is that they generally advise defendants to plead guilty when the evidence against them is strong, so they probably deserve some credit for the guilty plea and the avoidance of a trial.

I was once called to court to act as a witness for the crown and the defendant was persuaded to plead guilty on the day of the trial.

I suppose he feels he should have pleaded not guilty as he ended up with a life sentence anyway. Glad he did for the family. Given the public pressure as well as the fact he pleaded guilty I can’t see it being changed.

@Wherearemymarbles

See where he could have grounds is that Danyal Hussein has just been given a minimum term of 35 years for murdering 2 women. He could be out when he is 54. Personally i cant see why he didn’t get a whole life sentence when Couzens did. Both equally dangerous in my book. If wayne couzens had been given 35 years he’d be 83 before release and probably dead.

Hussein could not be given a whole life tariff as he is under the age of 21, apparently. I don't know whether that makes it better or even more depressing. Got this from a Guardian article about the case today, which explains how the judge arrived at 35 years - usual would be 37 but slightly reduced due to his young age and autism. However she has clearly aimed not to reduce it significantly, and has had to work within the set constraints on sentencing. Agree that Hussein being free in his fifties is a problem, though the judge also said this would be contingent on him not being considered a danger to the public. With any luck, Couzens will live long enough to suffer but not long enough to see a release date.

@NotPersephone

This was to be expected the lovely defence lawyers after more money and he has sod all else to do all day.

He is undoubtedly scum, but we're fortunate to live in a place with legal due process where rights of appeal on a point of law exist. I don't expect anyone - including defence lawyers - to work for free.

The lovely defence lawyers may well have advised him that he has no chance, but he has told them to go ahead regardless.

As for Hussein he will only be released if he is not considered to be a danger to the public.

I actually thought the European Court of Human Rights (for the avoidance of doubt, nothing to do with the EU court of justice) had banned whole life tariffs but I guess that is why they are now only used in very limited circumstances.

@NotPersephone

This was to be expected the lovely defence lawyers after more money and he has sod all else to do all day.

He is undoubtedly scum, but we're fortunate to live in a place with legal due process where rights of appeal on a point of law exist. I don't expect anyone - including defence lawyers - to work for free.

Quite. The people bleating on about defence lawyers encouraging him and coining it are showing themselves up.

Plus he doesn't seem like the type to be led by legal advice. He can clearly come up with repugnant plans all by himself. It's hardly as if he's been lured off the straight and narrow by defence lawyers.

I think this was the latest on whole life tariffs. Seems like it's fine with the ECHR as there are limited special circumstances where the Secretary of State can release someone imprisoned on a whole life tariff, even if that is very unusual.

www.theguardian.com/law/2017/jan/17/european-judges-uphold-uk-right-to-impose-whole-life-jail-sentences

I hope he's unable to alter the sentence. His crimes were horrific. However he was also a serving police officer and he used that position to arrest and kidnap Sarah when he was in a position of trust.