Portsmouth aggravated burglar and paedophile among 61 criminals to have sentences upped for being too lenient

Aggravated burglar Darren Rose, 29, and paedophile Carl Keirle, 32, were dished out more just sentences under the Unduly Lenient Sentence scheme.

They were among 61 offenders in 2020 who had their sentences increased after the Attorney General and then Solicitor General, MP Michael Ellis QC, challenged their sentences because it was thought they were too low.

It meant Keirle, who was initially only given a three-year community order at Portsmouth Crown Court for engaging in sexual communication with a 15-year-old in December 2020, was instead dumped behind bars for two years and six months in April.

He was among just five people who were imprisoned after avoiding prison time at their original sentencing.

Rose had his sentence increased by two years to nine years after he was found guilty of aggravated burglary and wounding with intent against two victims.

Rose - who had 38 previous convictions to his name including many for theft and violence - was convicted of breaking into a shared house in the early hours of October 26, 2019, and assaulting a man with a wine bottle in a jealous rage.

Rose was jealous of the perceived relationship his victim had with Rose’s then partner. A female housemate who confronted Rose was also assaulted and other residents were left in fear.

In October 2020, Rose was sentenced to seven years imprisonment at Portsmouth Crown Court.

Following the court’s decision, Mr Ellis referred the sentence to the Court of Appeal under the Unduly Lenient Sentence (ULS) scheme.

On February 4 this year, the court found the sentence to be unduly lenient and increased it to nine years jail behind bars.

After the hearing Mr Ellis said: ‘Rose broke into a house and assaulted two innocent people. The Court of Appeal’s decision to extend his sentence was the right one, and I hope this will lead to comfort for his victims.’

In total 552 applications were made for sentences to be reviewed which met criteria to be considered under the Scheme - with 97 of these referred to the Court of Appeal.

The Court of Appeal agreed 61 sentences were too low and as a result 61 offenders had their sentences increased.

In a further 16 cases, the Court of Appeal agreed to ask for the sentence to be reviewed but these were not ultimately increased.

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Mr Ellis, who is now Attorney General, said: ‘In the vast majority of cases judges get it right, but the scheme remains an important tool to ensure that cases can be reviewed where there may have been a gross error in the sentencing decision.

‘It’s not just about increasing sentences, the scheme also provides an important avenue for my office to ask the Court of Appeal for guidance, to help shape the sentencing framework and ensure more consistent sentencing for complex cases.’

A message from the Editor, Mark Waldron

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