Southport Triple Murder Case Highlights Criminal Age Threshold

Rudakubana's crimes are so severe that they may have warranted a whole life order, under the Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Act 2022, whole life orders can only be given to a defendant who was aged 18 or above at the time of committing their crimes. Rudakubana was aged 17 on the date of his offences in July last year, being a mere matter of days shy of his 18th birthday, and is therefore not eligible for a whole life order.

He will instead receive life imprisonment, with the judge's role being to determine the minimum term he must serve behind bars before he will become eligible for release on licence. Sentencing Council guidelines state that the starting point for a murder with a knife which the offender took to the scene is one of 25 years, although this would be the jail term for a single offence rather than three.

 
Justice Goose will also factor other aggravating and mitigating factors, for example the number of charges on the indictment and the defendant's age and mental health. Rudakubana will then receive a reduction from his sentence by way of credit for his guilty plea, which is limited to a sixth for an offence of murder but ordinarily restricted to 10% for an admission on the day of trial.

source Wales online