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Why won’t Murrell be sentenced today?published at 10:51 BST
David Henderson
Scotland news correspondent
Normally, after the guilty party’s crimes have been read out in court, the defence would stand up and present a plea in mitigation – the case for
leniency.
They’d
emphasise the early guilty plea, his age, his clean record, any remorse, and
argue for the shortest possible sentence.
After
that, the judge would pass sentence.
But
that didn’t happen today.
The
judge, Lord Young, wants a criminal justice social work report before sentencing – an assessment of Murrell’s background, circumstances and risk.
These
normally take three to four weeks to prepare.
He
ordered one last week – so the case has been “continued” for reports,
with the mitigation and sentencing expected at a hearing on 23 June.
There’s
a tactical dimension too.
Murrell’s
defence team may actually prefer a gap between the narrative and the mitigation – letting the shock of the detail settle, before trying to reframe the story.
Nobody
would want to plead for sympathy straight after the court has heard about the
embezzlement of salt and pepper grinders costing £2,618.
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