The LAWYER who successfully prosecuted the Brighton cat killer spoke about factors that could influence his conviction.
District Crown Attorney Sally Lakin successfully sued Steve Bouquet for killing or injuring 16 cats in a series of attacks that lasted more than eight months.
Bouquet was originally scheduled to be sentenced on July 12, but it was postponed after being transported to hospital.
Ms. Lakin said: “Sentencing is up to the court, there was no early guilty plea, so Mr. Bouquet would not have received any credit for an early guilty plea. The number of cats involved will be an aggravating factor.
“Any mitigating factor that the defense wishes to put forward is a matter for them and I am not aware of at this time.
“The judge will take into account the evidence he has heard, the impact on the owners and to some extent the sentencing guidelines.”
Nine cats received hand injuries from Bouquet that were so severe that they could not be saved.
Hannah, Tommy, Alan, Nancy, Gizmo, Kyo, Ollie, Hendrix and Cosmo were all killed
Seven other cats, Wheatley, Alistair, Rigby, Gideon, Samson, Jasper and Maggie survived.
Ms Lakin was asked about the decision to sue Bouquet for criminal damages and not some other offense, such as animal cruelty.
She said, “Cruelty to animals is a summer offense only. This means that it can only be heard in lower courts, in the Magistrates Court. He has a maximum sentence of only six months.
“So if convicted, it would have resulted in a much lower sentence than criminal damages.
“Since criminal damages are a two-way offense that can be heard in Crown court, as was the case in this case, this will allow the court a much wider range of sentences.
“The maximum penalty for criminal damages on indictment is ten years. So it better reflected the nature of the offense and the devastation that was caused. ”
The offense of criminal harm carries a maximum penalty of 10 years imprisonment.
In order for a criminal offense to be brought, a value must be calculated. In this case, a value was assigned to the damage caused to killed and injured cats.
These values varied considerably.
For example, the damage to Gizmo, who was killed at Ditchling Rise on March 27, 2019, was assessed at £ 384.40.
But the damage to Cosmo, who died after being stabbed in Port Hall Place on June 1, 2019, was assessed at £ 5,056.44
The biggest damage caused was that of Samson, who survived after being stabbed on November 18, 2018, at Ditchling Rise. This has been valued at £ 7,500.
Ms. Lakin was asked how these numbers were calculated.
“This was calculated based on the vets’ bills and some of the cats were the subject of autopsy reports,” she said.
Earlier this week, the owner of an alleged victim of the Brighton cat killer called for greater protection for all animals.
The district crown attorney was asked if the law needs updating in the wake of Bouquet’s crimes.
She said: “Obviously it was a horrible and horrible case, it’s a case where pets, much loved pets that were a part of the owner’s life, were killed and abused in an intolerable way.
“But decisions on the law and its amendments are up to Parliament, not CPS, but CPS is committed to prosecuting offenders who mistreat or mistreat animals.
“The CPS prosecuted 209 animal cruelty offenses in 2020 and 2021.
“But the reason the criminal damage charge was chosen over animal cruelty is that we as CPS must consider the best charge for the offending behavior.
“We must also consider the best charge that allows the court an appropriate range of sentences”
Police were taken aback and The Brighton Cat Killer was an invisible man until revealed by a single mistake.
A breakthrough in the horrific mystery came when a CCTV system put in place by the owner of a killed cat appeared to capture a new attack on camera.
The Argus previously revealed that Sussex Police sent a total of 23 cases to the Crown Prosecution Service – seven more than previously thought.
However, these did not meet the high threshold of “compelling and irrefutable evidence”.
Ms Lakin said the Brighton Cat Killer case was “extremely unusual” for the prosecution.
She said: “It was extremely unusual in terms of the number of animals included.
“Also, generally when we look at cases of animal cruelty, we look for the actual owners who caused the injuries.
“Obviously it was completely different. Mr. Bouquet had preyed on the animals of other people in his area.
“The CPS hopes that the fact that Mr. Bouquet was convicted on all counts brings some comfort to the owners as it was obviously an extremely traumatic time for them and it was a case that touched the community in the sense large.
“The local community was devastated and worried, and rightly so.
“But this is an unusual case, it is certainly not one that the PSC would expect to be brought to our attention on a regular basis and we hope it will bring some comfort to the community at large. ”
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Source: www.theargus.co.uk
This notice was published: 2021-07-17 04:00:00
