Criminal Justice Act 1991

63 Custodial sentences under 1982 Act

(1) Part I of the 1982 Act (treatment of young offenders) shall be amended as follows.

(2) In section 1A (detention in a young offender institution)—

(a) in subsection (1), for the words “a male offender under 21 but not less than 14 years of age or a female offender under 21 but not less than 15 years of age” there shall be substituted the words “an offender under 21 but not less than 15 years of age”;

(b) in subsection (2), for the words “section 1B(1) and (2)” there shall be substituted the words “section 1B(2)”;

(c) in subsection (3), the words “and section 1B(3) below” shall cease to have effect and for the words “21 days” there shall be substituted the words “the minimum period applicable to the offender under subsection (4A) below”;

(d) in subsection (4), for the words “21 days” there shall be substituted the words “the minimum period applicable”; and

(e) after subsection (4) there shall be inserted the following subsection—

“(4A) For the purposes of subsections (3) and (4) above, the minimum period of detention applicable to an offender is—

(a) in the case of an offender under 21 but not less than 18 years of age, the period of 21 days; and

(b) in the case of an offender under 18 years of age, the period of two months.”

(3) In section 1B (special provision for offenders under 17)—

(a) subsections (1) and (3) shall cease to have effect;

(b) in subsection (2), for the words “aged 15 or 16” there shall be substituted the words “aged 15, 16 or 17”; and

(c) for subsections (4) and (5) there shall be substituted the following subsections—

“(4) A court shall not pass on an offender aged 15, 16 or 17 a sentence of detention in a young offender institution whose effect would be that the offender would be sentenced to a total term which exceeds 12 months.

(5) Where the total term of detention in a young offender institution to which an offender aged 15, 16 or 17 is sentenced exceeds 12 months, so much of the term as exceeds 12 months shall be treated as remitted.”

(4) In section 1C (accommodation of offenders in a young offender institution), for the words “under 17” there shall be substituted the words “under 18”.

(5) In section 8 (custody for life) and section 9 (detention of persons aged 17 to 20 for default or contempt), for the words “17 years” there shall be substituted the words “18 years”.