Breach of SHPO - Client Avoids Prison

Case study summary

Our client pleaded guilty to breaching his sexual harm prevention order. He explained the circumstances surrounding the breach and we obtained evidence to support this. We instructed an expert criminal barrister who successfully argued for the prison sentence to be suspended.

Case study

Our client was a 55-year-old lorry driver. In 2020, he was convicted of one sexual assault charge and subjected to a 5-year sexual harm prevention order. He was represented by another firm at the time. In 2023, he asked us to represent him at his sentence hearing after he had pleaded guilty to breaching his sexual harm prevention order.

The prosecution case was that our client had failed to notify the police before he traveled to another country, failed to re-register on the sex offenders' register as he is required to do at the start of every year which he is subject to the sexual harm prevention order, failed to notify the police that he slept overnight at an address where a child under the age of 18 lived and he subsequently breached his sexual harm prevention order by doing so.

Our client accepted the allegations and pleaded guilty at the first available opportunity. He stated that he had mistaken the deadline by which he was due to re-register on the sex offenders' register. In relation to the foreign travel, his brother-in-law had been shot in Pakistan. Our client urgently needed to visit him as it was not certain whether his brother-in-law would survive and so, he was unable to provide the required notice to the police. He also accepted that he had been living at his brother's house with him and his young children for a period of time to assist with the care for their mother who was unwell. Our client understood that his actions meant he had breached the sexual harm prevention order and the consequence was that he risked being sent to prison.

We obtained evidence to support our client's case and instructed an experienced and trusted criminal defence barrister to represent him at his sentence hearing. Our client's barrister was successful in persuading the court not to impose an immediate prison sentence and a 6 month prison sentence was imposed which was suspended for 12 months. Our client was relieved with the outcome.