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| Stuart Hall's jail term 'did not reflect gravity' of offences | Stuart Hall's jail term 'did not reflect gravity' of offences |
| (35 minutes later) | |
| Stuart Hall's sentence for indecent assault did not adequately reflect the gravity of his offences, the attorney general has told the Court of Appeal. | |
| Dominic Grieve made the submission at the start of a hearing in London. | Dominic Grieve made the submission at the start of a hearing in London. |
| The judges are being asked to rule on whether or not Hall's 15-month sentence was "unduly lenient". | |
| Former BBC broadcaster Hall, 83, of Wilmslow, was jailed in June after admitting 14 counts against girls aged from nine to 17 between 1967 and 1985. | |
| Mr Grieve told Lord Chief Justice Lord Judge, Lady Justice Rafferty and Mrs Justice Macur that the sentence "when coupled with the aggravating features... failed adequately to reflect the gravity of the totality of the offences, and the public concern about offences of this nature". | Mr Grieve told Lord Chief Justice Lord Judge, Lady Justice Rafferty and Mrs Justice Macur that the sentence "when coupled with the aggravating features... failed adequately to reflect the gravity of the totality of the offences, and the public concern about offences of this nature". |
| "Even if the individual sentences for each count are appropriate given the statutory maximum available, some should have been made to run consecutively so that the total sentence passed reflected the culpability of the offender, the harm caused and [would] deter others," he said. | "Even if the individual sentences for each count are appropriate given the statutory maximum available, some should have been made to run consecutively so that the total sentence passed reflected the culpability of the offender, the harm caused and [would] deter others," he said. |
| He added that "it appears to me that the sentence was unduly lenient". | He added that "it appears to me that the sentence was unduly lenient". |
| 'Alcohol and planning' | |
| Crispin Aylett QC, for Hall, said the sentence was "entirely appropriate" given the former broadcaster's age and the facts that he pleaded guilty early and that his last offence occurred 27 years ago. | |
| He told the court: "If the object was to see this man punished, disgraced and financially ruined then all of that has been more than achieved." | |
| Documents submitted to the court by the attorney general include a list of aggravating features to be considered by the judges. | |
| They include Hall's "prolonged and repeated offending" and the fact there were multiple victims "some of particularly tender age [and] in circumstances of acute vulnerability". | |
| They also state that some of the offences included a "gross breach of trust", "an element of grooming", the "use of alcohol" and "planning and premeditation". | |
| Mr Grieve said the crimes had had a "profound effect" on the victims and that force had been used by Hall on two occasions. | |
| Lord Judge said it was the court's view that the statement made by Hall prior to conviction, in which he branded the accusations as "pernicious, callous, cruel and above all spurious", was a "seriously aggravating feature". | |
| The judges have now retired to consider their decision. |