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You are here: BAILII >> Databases >> England and Wales High Court (Administrative Court) Decisions >> Asghar, Review of the Tariff in the Case of [2023] EWHC 1173 (Admin) (18 May 2023) URL: http://www.bailii.org/ew/cases/EWHC/Admin/2023/1173.html Cite as: [2023] EWHC 1173 (Admin) |
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KING'S BENCH DIVISION
ADMINISTRATIVE COURT
Strand, London, WC2A 2LL |
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B e f o r e :
____________________
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Crown Copyright ©
MR JUSTICE DOVE:
Background.
1. The Applicant pleaded guilty to murder and was sentenced at the Crown Court in Sheffield on 21st December 2011 by Davis J to Detention at Her Majesty's Pleasure with a minimum term of 17 and a half years, less the 419 days that he had spent of remand.
2. The Applicant has sought a review of his tariff. Although any reduction is a matter for the Lord Chancellor and Secretary of State for Justice, I have been asked to review the tariff in this case and to recommend, in the light of the evidence which has been provided in support of the application, whether any such reduction should be made, noting that the Lord Chancellor and Secretary of State for Justice will honour any recommendation which is made. Of course, the question of whether or when the Applicant is to be released is not a matter for determination as part of this review. That is a matter which will be determined by the Parole Board in due course at the expiration of the minimum term on the basis of his risk at that stage.
The criteria for review.
"17. I accordingly conclude that the progress of those sentenced to HMP detention before 30th November 2000, whose minimum terms have been set by the Lord Chief Justice and have not expired, should remain subject to continuing review for consideration of the minimum term imposed if clear evidence of exceptional and unforeseen progress is reasonably judged to require it."
"29. In the Home Secretary's statement to Parliament of 10th November 1997 set out at [19] above he announced the policy which he would adopt in reviewing tariffs in the case of DHMP detainees. The concluding sentence of the statement refers to four types of evidence which could be considered: (i) significant alteration in the offender's maturity and outlook since the commission of the offence; (ii) risks to his continued development cannot be sufficiently mitigated or removed in the custodial environment; (iii) any matter calling into question the basis of the original decision to set the tariff at a particular level; and (iv) any other matter which appears relevant. On the other hand, the actual decision in Smith was, in the words of Lord Bingham, that the progress of DHMP detainees sentenced before 30th November 2000 should remain subject to continuing review for the reconsideration of the minimum term imposed if clear evidence of exceptional and unforeseen progress is reasonably judged to require it [17].
30. It is not clear to me whether judges can be asked to make recommendations for the reduction of minimum terms of DHMP originally set by the trial judge on grounds other than clear evidence of exceptional and unforeseen progress. Some published decisions on tariff reviews suggest that they can although we were not shown any decision in which an application for a reduction on any other ground has been successful. It is unnecessary to decide the point in this case since I agree with Mitting J that exceptional and unforeseen progress was the real basis on which he was asked to review the Claimant's minimum term."
The facts of the offence.
"2.9 Eventually Mr Asghar met up with Ms Wilson under the "green bridge" not far from the canal in Rotherham. He stated that she was drunk and he was "pissed off" with her for keeping him waiting. They argued about alleged false facebook accounts, rumours that he was seeing someone else and about what she had said to both men's families. I was told by the defendant that the victim was abusive towards him and that he was annoyed with her being so drunk. Mr Asghar then states that he punched Ms Laura Wilson and after losing control, using a knife that he had concealed in his sock, he stabbed her. He describes this period of time as a "blur" and claims to have no recollection of how many times he stabbed Ms Laura Wilson. However, the defendant does believe that he stabbed the victim about the head. He is able to recall speaking to Mr Hussain and another friend on the phone after the murder. Mr Asghar denied that Ms Wilson was in the canal when he left the scene, and neither is he aware how she ended up there. Evidence suggests that he washed his clothing and also destroyed items that could have been incriminating by burning them."
Progress in custody.
"Ashtiaq has demonstrated some motivation to engage, has kept prison rules and avoided negative peer influences. He is an enhanced prisoner. He presents as polite, is quietly spoken and does not present as angry or abusive."
"Attitudes and behaviour:
Mr Asghar has been at HMP Dovegate Therapeutics community previously September 2014, during this period his emotional well-being was a concern for the professionals, and he was deselected from the assessment process. Mr Asghar returned to Therapeutic community on 25th August 2017, completing the assessment Mr Asghar states, "feel in a better place". Mr Asghar attends the "thoughts and feelings", and the "small groups", has taken two groups. In therapy review on 14th February 2018 concerns were raised about how he [was] managing to have a voice in the community. On speaking with the psychotherapist Sean Bay it appears Asghar is still within the early days of the intervention in terms of speaking up in the groups and there are concerns that "he is getting lost slipping under the water"."
"The reports state Mr Asghar accepts responsibility for the index offence but there are discrepancies between his and the official accounts of the index offence. During the work there appeared initially a lot of minimisations and blaming the victim pushing his buttons; however, to his credit he made significant progress developing his insight of his emotions and negative thinking behind his abusive behaviour."
"When Mr Asghar arrived on the Therapeutic Community, he at first spent a lot of time in his cell and it had been witnessed that he did not involve himself with others yet he remained compliant with the regime. Once therapy had commenced, he began to open up as he was encouraged to do this by his sister who would visit him regularly. He became committed to working hard on the TC and he took on board what was said and placed himself away from negative peers. Despite a positive start on TC Mr Asghar began to struggle to speak up within the group therapy sessions and appeared content in remaining quiet and if he did offer a response, it was minimal. His Key Worker had spoken to him regarding him being more vocal and involving himself more, however, his personality of being a quiet individual and lack of confidence was preventing him from doing this. It then became more beneficial for Mr Asghar to finish his therapy and it was agreed to return to main location.
Mr Asghar's childhood may have had an impact on how he manages his emotions and his confidence due to him being hospitalised with cancer during his childhood. Due to this he lost contact with his friends and not being able to have a normal childhood as one would expect. He stated he then felt isolated and lonely which in turn he lost his confidence in himself. He began to resent his family as he felt they did not understand how he was feeling at that time. Mr Asghar struggled to express his emotions to his family about how he was feeling and so kept his feelings to himself. This vulnerability is likely to have stayed with him throughout his life and led him to believe that his emotions were best kept to himself, rather than expressing them.
Upon transferring back onto the main location Mr Asghar expressed an interest in applying for an Open University course. Once on the main location he remained a quiet person however he continued to be polite and respectful towards staff. Mr Asghar managed to seek employment as a listener, and he received a positive entry on 18/12/2019 for fulfilling his role and it was noted the outreach learning have nothing but positive things to say about his work ethic. Staff also commented, he causes them no problems and adheres well to the prison regime."
"As aforementioned Mr Asghar has completed the Health Relationships Programme prior to his transfer to HMP Dovegate. Furthermore, it is also noted there have not been any proven adjudications for a period of four years. It can be evidenced Mr Asghar shows an element of maturity, and he is beginning to now understand the reasons behind his index offence. He has taken on board the opportunities the prison establishment can offer in terms of risk reduction. These opportunities include attitudes and Educational learning and the ability to recognise the need to further express his emotions and develop further his confidence in order to achieve this."
The applicants' representations.
Conclusions.