SALLY MERTENS PERSUADES JUDGE TO DEPART FROM SENTENCING GUIDELINES

Sally Mertens represented a defendant who was charged with causing/inciting penetrative sexual activity with a child, causing/inciting non-penetrative sex with a child and sexual communication with a child between 1st February 2023 and 28th May 2023. The child was a pseudo child.

The Sentencing Guidelines set out a starting point of 5 years, with a range of 4 - 10 years’ custody. Sally made submissions seeking to distinguish the case of R v Privett and drew attention to the defendant’s significant personal mitigation. The judge imposed a sentence of 2 years' imprisonment suspended for 2 years. 

Sally was instructed by Jurgena Miculi of Lloyds PR.