Starmer says Court of Appeal to reconsider jail terms for teenage rapists after public anger
Teenage rapists’ lenient sentences will be reviewed by the Court of Appeal after the attorney general decided they were unduly lenient, Sir Keir Starmer has announced. The prime minister said Attorney General Lord Richard Hermer had examined the case and referred it under the unduly lenient sentence scheme, a power governed by the Criminal Justice Act 1988.
The case concerns two 15-year-old boys convicted of raping two girls in separate incidents in Fordingbridge, Hampshire. The first attack took place on 26 November 2024, and the second on 17 January 2025. At Southampton Crown Court, Judge Nicholas Rowland handed the boys non-custodial sentences: three-year youth rehabilitation orders (YROs) with 180 days of intensive supervision and surveillance (ISS). A third boy, aged 14, who was convicted of encouraging one of the attackers and an indecent images offence, received an 18-month YRO.
The sentencing decision drew an immediate outcry, and Sir Keir told reporters the case was “really distressing” and the courage of the girls who came forward was “humbling”. He said: “The attorney general has power to refer a case to a court of appeal if the attorney general thinks that the sentence is too lenient. The attorney general has now exercised that power. So I can announce that the case will go to a Court of Appeal… and that is clearly the right outcome.”
Judge’s reasoning: ‘Avoid criminalising these children unnecessarily’
Judge Nicholas Rowland, who presided over the sentencing, acknowledged the seriousness of the crimes and said the fact that the assaults were filmed made them “more serious”. The offenders filmed the attacks and shared the footage on social media, leading to one victim receiving abusive messages in which she was called a “slag” and said she “wanted to die”.
Nevertheless, the judge opted against custody. He stated he wanted to “avoid criminalising these children unnecessarily” and stressed the importance of supporting their reintegration into society. He also noted that “peer pressure played a large part in what went on”. Court documents indicate that the judge highlighted the defendants’ young age and cognitive or developmental difficulties, including ADHD and anxiety, as factors in his decision.
The YRO with ISS is described by the Ministry of Justice as the “most rigorous, non-custodial intervention available for young people”. It combines intensive community-based surveillance with measures to address the causes of offending. Requirements can include tracking, electronic tagging, voice verification, a curfew, and an extended activity requirement of 90 to 180 days. The most intensive supervision – around 25 hours per week – typically lasts for the first three months, followed by a reduced-intensity period of another three months. These orders are intended as alternatives to custody for young people who have committed serious offences, but the offence must cross the custody threshold. The Court of Appeal’s test for whether a sentence is unduly lenient is whether it falls “outside the range of sentences which the judge, applying his mind to all the relevant factors, could reasonably consider appropriate” – a threshold the attorney general has now judged may be met.
Political reaction: ‘Those girls deserve justice’
Government ministers and MPs from across the political spectrum condemned the sentences. Chief Secretary to the Prime Minister Darren Jones became emotional during a television interview on Sunday after hearing testimony from one of the victims. “As a minister, what I can’t do is get ahead of the attorney general’s decision, but look, as a parent and as a member of the public, you can imagine what my personal view is on the situation,” he told the BBC. Pressed further, a visibly upset Mr Jones said: “Those girls deserve justice, as do their families, both for them but also for other girls that are put in that position. And quite frankly, other boys need to know that they can’t behave in that way and get away with it.”
Sarah Owen MP, chair of the Women and Equalities Committee, said the “harrowing case not only needs to be reviewed as soon as possible, but also the process that has allowed boys found guilty of rape, videoing and sharing that rape being allowed off with a non-custodial sentence”. She added: “To victims of rape and sexual assault, this is not what justice looks like. With so few reports of rape even making it to court, this leniency also sends a very dangerous message to perpetrators of sexual violence.” She described it as “heartbreaking” that the girls had suffered only to have a judge “who appeared more concerned with the future of the rapists than they did the victims”.
Jess Phillips, the former Minister for Safeguarding and Violence Against Women and Girls, said she believed the review was correct, adding: “It’s important not just for justice in these cases but also for the message it sends to both boys and girls more broadly. I also think the case highlights how important early intervention with kids who go on to perpetrate these crimes and the need for regulation on social media and safety of the devices every parent gets their kid age 10.”
Hampshire Police and Crime Commissioner Donna Jones also voiced deep concern, calling the sentences “far too lenient”.
Victim and campaigner perspectives: ‘A rock straight in my face’
The victims have spoken of the devastating impact of both the attacks and the sentences. One of the girls described the judge’s decision as a “rock straight in my face”, saying it felt as though the law was condoning the perpetrators’ actions because they were children. She questioned the purpose of enduring the trauma of a trial if the result was a non-custodial sentence. Both victims reported feelings of shame, insecurity, and a loss of their former selves.
Gisèle Pelicot, the French rape survivor whose husband Dominique Pelicot was jailed for 20 years in 2024 for drugging and raping her and inviting dozens of other men to do the same, said she was “deeply shocked” that the boys had avoided jail. Speaking to BBC Breakfast, the 73-year-old, who waived her own right to anonymity, “saluted the strength” of one of the girls for speaking out. “I am deeply shocked that these individuals were in fact able to gain their freedom again when in fact the victims are suffering so hard they will never be able to heal,” she said. She added that she hoped her own story “was useful for her to make that decision” to come forward.
The Court of Appeal will now hear the referral. The attorney general’s power to refer sentences is set out in the Criminal Justice Act 1988, and the referral must be made within 28 days of sentencing. The court can increase a sentence if it deems it unduly lenient, though legal experts note this is a very high threshold to meet. Lord Hermer KC, appointed attorney general in July 2024, has faced past criticism of his record concerning lenient sentences, though his office has stated that decisions on prosecution, conviction and sentencing are made independently of government. The Court of Appeal’s decision does not automatically mean the sentences will be altered.
