Related Stories
Attorney General to investigate if sentence 'too lenient' after veteran BBC broadcaster Stuart Hall gets 15 months for indecently assaulting 13 girls
Key Excerpts from Article on Website of The Independent (One of the UK's leading newspapers)
Posted: July 31st, 2013
http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/crime/attorney-general-...
The Attorney General is to examine whether disgraced former BBC broadcaster Stuart Halls 15-month sentence for indecent assault was unduly lenient. The 83-year-old former BBC sports presenter was sent to jail on Monday after admitting a series of indecent assaults on girls as young as nine, but may only serve half of his sentence. Despite initially telling police his victims were all lying ... the former Its a Knockout host admitted his guilt ... and was jailed on 14 counts of indecent assault. But MPs and campaigners last night reacted with anger at what they felt was a light sentence. The Director of Public Prosecutions, Emily Thornberry, Labours shadow Attorney General, said the sentence surely cannot be strong enough for the seriousness and circumstances of the crime. She added: 15 months is not just a lenient sentence, it is unduly lenient. Harriet Harman, the shadow Deputy Prime Minister, wrote on Twitter: 18 years offending and Stuart Hall gets less than 18 months. One victim, who was just 13 when Hall sexually assaulted her, said yesterday that she knew of more girls who had not yet spoken out, including one who was just eight when the alleged abuse took place. Hall ... was described as an opportunistic predator who targeted his victims between 1967 and 1987. For half a century he was a much-loved, light entertainer who could often be found unable to contain his laughter on television. But ... his career as one of the countrys most prominent figures in British broadcasting ending in disgrace after string of sexual abuses were first revealed last year.
Note: For more on child sexual abuse, see the deeply revealing reports from reliable major media sources available here.