Paedophile’s Sentence Under Review

The Court of Appeal is to review the sentence handed down to a paedophile who was allowed to walk free after his 13-year-old victim was branded ”predatory” by a barrister. The offender, 41-year-old Neil Wilson, admitted engaging in sexual activity with the child, as well as offences of making indecent images of a child and offences of possession of an extreme pornographic image.

Sentence Referred to Court of Appeal

He was given a 12-month jail sentence suspended for two years. However, it later emerged that prosecuting barrister Robert Colover had described the young girl as ”predatory” and ”sexually experienced”. In the wake of the controversy, Attorney General Dominic Grieve QC has referred Wilson’s sentence to the Court of Appeal. Three judges will decide whether or not the sentence is unduly lenient and whether they should increase it, said a statement by Mr Grieve’s office. Mr Colover has been suspended from prosecuting sexual offence cases pending a review by the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS), while Judge Peters’ comments are to be investigated by the Office for Judicial Complaints. As well as receiving a number of complaints, the CPS was confronted by a petition, which now has more than 50,000 signatures, demanding Director of Public Prosecutions Keir Starmer investigate the language used by Mr Colover.

If you want to enquire about making a claim, you can speak to child abuse lawyers on 01895 207835 or 01895 207295. Alternatively, you can send an email with your name and contact information and brief details to PI@ibblaw.co.uk and a member of our team will be able to help you.