Tougher action plea over knife offenders
GRIEVING BROTHER CAMPAIGNS FOR SENTENCE SHAKE-UP
A MAN whose brother was stabbed to death at a house party in Sneinton is campaigning for tougher sentences for those caught carrying knives.
Terry Maughan, 35, of Sneinton, said he will never forget the moment his distraught mum screamed down the phone, “my baby is gone” after hearing the news of his brother’s death.
He wants to stop other families being left with a “massive hole” in their lives after his younger brother, Martin Maughan, 27, was attacked.
Martin had a one-year-old daughter and was looking forward to spending Christmas with her - before that fateful night took everything away.
The court had heard the defendant, 19-year-old Ben Richardson, and Martin had been arguing about money when Richardson stabbed him twice in the chest, one wound causing his death.
The attack happened outside ground-floor flat of Martin’s father in West Walk, Sneinton, on Saturday, December 10, 2016.
His father was hosting a party at the time and now lives with the memory of his son staggering inside and saying, “Daddy, look what Ben has just done to me”.
Richardson, who has the mental age of a six-year-old, was detained under the Mental Health Act.
He pleaded guilty to manslaughter by loss of control.
Richardson had a previous conviction for knife crime. In November 2017, he received a two-year youth rehabilitation order for wounding with intent after he stabbed a 21-year-old.
The court said he will not be released until the Secretary of State is satisfied that it is safe to do so.
The Ministry of Justice could not confirm whether Richardson has been released yet, as it was a hospital order, not a prison sentence.
Ben believes that first-time carriers of knives should receive a harsher sentence as a deterrent.
He has now set up a Parliament petition, calling on politicians to have a serious talk about knife crime sentences.
He said: “At the moment, it is a slap on the wrist. Since 2015, people aged 16 to 17 caught in possession of
a knife face a minimum of four months custodial sentence and adults from 18 years onwards will face a minimum six months.
“Martin was a massive character - he was the life and soul of the party. I was not there (when it happened). I was at work. But I had a phone call in the morning from my mum screaming down the phone. She said, ‘Martin is dead’.
“I was like, ‘what are you talking about?’ and she said, ‘ my baby has gone.’ I did not think it was real.”
Martin was one of five brothers and a sister and the impact on the family is still felt keenly today.
“No mum should ever bury their kid,” said Ben.
“It has been devastating. It has left a massive hole. My mum has never been well since. Martin was the last of us to leave home.
“I would never forgive him (his killer). I would like to see a change in current sentences.
“There is no deterrent there. You are only going to carry a knife if you aim to hurt someone so the sentencing has to be tougher. There is no fear of the law. “There are too many people burying their brothers and sons and everyone has had enough.
“If that kid who killed my brother got a proper sentence first time, we would not be having this conversation.”
The Parliament petition needs 100,000 signatures for the issue to be debated in Parliament, and so far he has gained just over 560. The Ministry of Justice said sentencing remains a matter for independent judges, based on the full facts of each case but threatening and repeat possession offenders should expect to go to prison. Current legislation includes a minimum custodial sentence for children aged 16 and 17 who have been convicted of possessing an offensive weapon for a second or subsequent occasion or threatening with an offensive weapon. There is a high threshold for imposing custody for children and custody must be used as a last resort.
The average immediate custodial sentence received by adult offenders sentenced under the “two-strike” rule rose from 7.2 months in the year up to March 2017, to 8.0 months in the year up to March 2020. For 16/17-year-olds it rose from 5.9 to 7.2 months.
A spokesman for the Ministry of Justice said: “We are taking strong action to tackle knife crime, including by recruiting 20,000 additional police officers and making it easier for the police to use stop and search powers.
“We are also consulting on new Serious Violence Reduction Orders to give the police personalised powers to target those already convicted of knife offences.”
A spokesman for the Sentencing Council, the independent body responsible for developing sentencing guidelines for the courts, said: “The council is under a statutory duty to monitor the operation and effect of all its guidelines. We are in the planning stages of evaluating the Bladed Articles and Offensive Weapons guidelines, as part of this statutory duty.”
To sign Mr Maughan’s petition see: https://petition.parliament.uk/ petitions/554242