Whole Life Orders for murder

Introduction

In September 2021, Wayne Couzens was sentenced to life imprisonment with a whole life order in accordance with s321(3) Sentencing Act 2020 for the murder of Sarah Everard.

Schedule 21

In determining what tariff applies to a defendant, judicial discretion in this area is constrained by Sch 21 Sentencing Act 2020, which identifies various starting point tariffs.

Where the court considers that the seriousness of the offence (or the combination of offences) is exceptionally high, and the offender was aged 21 or over when the offence was committed, the starting point is a whole life order (para2(1)). Sch 21 sets out various cases that would normally be categorised as being of ‘exceptionally high’ seriousness: (a) the murder of two or more persons, where each murder involves either a substantial degree of premeditation or planning, the abduction of the victim, or sexual or sadistic conduct, (b) the murder of a child if involving the abduction of the child or sexual or sadistic motivation, (c) the murder of a police officer or prison officer in the course of their duty where the offence was committed on or after 13 April 2015, (d) a murder done for the purpose of advancing a political, religious, racial or ideological cause, or (e) a murder by an offender previously convicted of murder (paragraph 2(2)).

Sentencing

It is important to note at this juncture that the category of case that may be classed as of ‘exceptionally high’ seriousness within Sch 21 is not a closed class: paragraph 2 of Sch 21 notes that “cases that … would normally fall within sub-paragraph (1)(a) include …” (emphasis added), something clearly in the mind of Fulford LJ:

“The Schedule clearly has the objective of identifying the types or categories of case which, as a matter of principle, are in themselves so serious that a whole life order ought to be the starting point. I anticipate that only very rarely will situations arise which merit this starting point but which were not included in paragraph 2(2).” [para 18, Sentencing Remarks].

Towards the end of careful and thoughtful sentencing remarks, Fulford LJ sentenced Wayne Couzens to a whole life order, taking account of the extensive aggravating factors including the significant planning and premeditation, the abduction, the most serious sexual conduct, the mental and physical suffering inflicted upon Sarah Everard, and the attempt to conceal and destroy her body. His Lordship noted:

“The most important question in this sentencing exercise, therefore, revolves around a question of principle: if a police officer uses his office to kidnap, rape and murder a victim, is the seriousness of the offence exceptionally high, such that it ought to be treated in the same way as the other examples set out in paragraph 2(2). In my judgment the police are in a unique position, which is essentially different from any other public servants. They have powers of coercion and control that are in an exceptional category. In this country it is expected that the police will act in the public interest; indeed, the authority of the police is to a truly significant extent dependent on the public’s consent, and the power of officers to detain, arrest and otherwise control important aspects of our lives is only effective because of the critical trust that we repose in the constabulary, that they will act lawfully and in the best interests of society. If that is undermined, one of the enduring safeguards of law and order in this country is inevitably jeopardised. In my judgment, the misuse of a police officer’s role such as occurred in this case in order to kidnap, rape and murder a lone victim is of equal seriousness as a murder carried out for the purpose of advancing a political, religious, racial or ideological cause. All of these situations attack different aspects of the fundamental underpinnings of our democratic way of life.”[para 19, Sentencing Remarks].