Stuart Hall could see his 'unduly lenient' prison sentence increased

 
12 July 2013
WEST END FINAL

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Disgraced TV presenter Stuart Hall could see his prison sentence increased after his case was referred to the Appeal Court today for being unduly lenient.

Attorney General Dominic Grieve asked the senior judges to review the 15 month term imposed on Hall for a string of sex charges.

The move comes as victims revealed the convicted paedophile had tried to pay them off with “paltry” out of court settlements.

Hall, 83, had admitted at Preston Crown Court 14 counts of indecent assault against girls as young as nine between 1967 and 1987.

More than 150 people came forward to demand action to increase the It’s A Knockout presenter’s sentence.

A Government spokeswoman said: “Having carefully reviewed this case, the Attorney General has decided to refer the sentence to the Court of Appeal for review.

“The case will in due course be heard by three Court of Appeal judges who will decide whether or not the sentence is unduly lenient and whether they should increase the sentence.”

Hall directly exploited his role as a popular BBC presenter to target four of his victims, while he assaulted another four on the pretence of giving elocution lessons to them at his home.

Before entering his guilty plea in April, Hall had describing all the charges he faced as “cruel, pernicious and spurious” in a melodramatic statement on the steps of the court.

Shortly before he was jailed the wealthy broadcaster had signed over the deeds of his £2 million house in Wilmslow, Cheshire to his wife Hazel.

Susan Harrison, who was 16 when Hall abused her, said she had been offered £5,000 compensation which she described as “paltry offer” and an act of self-preservation.

Another victim, who wanted to remain anonymous, said Hall had offered £2,000 which she said was “totally unacceptable, humiliating and disgraceful.”

Hall had been charged last December with indecently assaulting three young girls.

More women came forward as a result of publicity and he was rearrested before he later admitted the sexual offences.

The length of the jail term was immediately criticised as “unduly lenient” by shadow attorney general Emily Thornberry, who urged Mr Grieve to look at the matter.

Harriet Harman, deputy leader of the Labour party, also added to calls for the sentence to be referred.

The Court of Appeal usually lists cases referred for being unduly lenient in about five to seven weeks.

The Attorney General said earlier this year that the number of sentences flagged to his office for being too lenient had surged to a record high in 2012.

The number of possibly unduly lenient sentences (ULS) drawn to the Attorney General’s attention in 2012 rose to 435, from 377 in 2011 and 342 in 2010.

Of the 435 sentences sent to the Attorney General, 344 sentences were eligible for consideration.

And of these, 82 cases were heard in the Court of Appeal, with 62 offenders seeing an increase in their sentence as a result.

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