Minimum Terms
Minimum terms set for young offenders by the Lord Chief Justice
27/02/03
10.00 am
Court 3
Royal Courts of Justice
The amended decision of the Lord Chief Justice on minimum term in the case of Kevin Panton in accordance with the Practice Direction dated 27 July 2000 (The Times, 9 August 2000)
1. Kevin Panton ("Panton") was born on 27 December 1983. On 3 August 2000 at Central Criminal Court Panton was convicted of murder and sentenced to be detained during Her Majesty's pleasure. The offence was committed on 17 September 1999 at which time Panton was 15 years of age.
2. On 17 September 1999 Panton stabbed Hyacinth Taylor ("the victim"), who was his cousin and known in the family as 'Aunty Hyacinth', in the head, neck and chest.
3. The victim made a 999 call at 11:31pm saying that her cousin had stabbed her whilst she was sleeping. The victim died in hospital from the wound to her chest in the early hours of 18 September 1999. The victim was 37 years of age.
4. Panton had let himself into the victim's house, probably to steal loudspeakers, while she was still out at work. He was disturbed by the return of the victim from work. It appears that £250 in cash was stolen from the victim on the night of the offence. Panton claimed later that he had killed his cousin to prevent her telling his mother that he was in the flat so late at night. Immediately following his arrest he had claimed that he had been chased to the victim's home by three boys, thus giving the impression that they must have killed her.
5. Panton had come to this country from Jamaica in 1998 to join his mother and other family members who lived in South London. He had, at first, stayed with the victim and they were apparently on good terms. Panton had been given a key to the victim's house and he was very friendly with the victim's son ("Dayton") who was the same age as Panton.
6. The trial judge, His Hon. Judge Michael Hyam recommended a minimum term of 8 years for punishment and deterrence.
7. The Lord Chief Justice did not recommend a minimum term.
8. The Secretary of State did not set a tariff.
9. Panton had no previous convictions.
10. Panton was placed at the Carlford Unit, HMP & YOI Hollesley Bay ("Carlford"). He has completed the Offending Behaviour & Victim Awareness Course and attends the Lifer Group. Panton is now on Gold Status for the Enhanced Regime (which he has been on for twelve months) although he had a setback where he was involved in a fight with another life sentence prisoner who received some nasty injuries from Panton.
11. Panton has learning difficulties (he has a low IQ of 67) and has significantly impaired verbal intelligence and poor verbal memory but he is keen to improve his education. He took the Level 1 exams for Key Skills in Communication and IT in May 2001 but was not successful. Panton is continuing to work towards his Level 1 qualifications.
12. Panton completed his AQA unit on Martin Luther King Jr., which he worked very hard on, and is continuing to work towards AQA units in Communication and Numbers. Panton attended a Prince's Trust music course held over a week in Warren Hill. He received glowing reports from the course and participated in a concert which was put on at the end of the course (Review Board Report dated 24 June 2002).
13. Panton has received good reports throughout his term at Carlford and the latest report states that Panton has maintained high standards and is well motivated in all aspects of the Carlford regime (Assessment and Review dated 22 June 2002).
14. It was felt appropriate for Panton to remain at Carlford into his 18th year whilst efforts were made to prepare him for the transfer. Panton feels distress at the prospective transfer and concern has been expressed concerning this (DTO Planning Review dated 5 October 2001). The intention is to transfer Panton, once he has finished sitting his exams, to YOI Swinfen Hall.
15. Panton has had no adjudications against him however there was an incident where he was involved in a fight with another life sentence prisoner who received some unpleasant injuries.
16. Panton has a good relationship with his mother and is in regular telephone contact with her. His father lives in Jamaica and Panton has not had much contact with him, if any, since the offence.
17. Panton is described as being deeply remorseful for the hurt he has caused. The victim was a good friend of Panton's family and Panton refers to her as his "Aunty". Panton is perceived as needing support in re-establishing his family ties.
18. There are no representations made by the family of the victim, however, the Tariff Review for Panton states that the family oppose any reduction in the tariff and believe that Panton should serve his sentence in full. The family have expressed concern that his tariff will be reduced because this was not a high profile case (Tariff Review in the Case of Kevin Panton/Policy Directorate/18 January 2002).
19. I have also read the letter from Detective Sergeant Bird to the Crown Prosecution Service, dated 5 November 2001, together with his observations that several close relatives believe that Panton should serve his sentence in full and that they are dismayed by the current system. The family members concerned were also disturbed by the fact that their comments would be shown to Panton whilst his own comments would remain confidential.
20. I have read the initial representations made by Panton dated 7 June 2001. I have also read the representations made by Panton dated 28 June 2002. Finally, I have read the draft letter written by Panton to Dayton dated 12 December 2001. The letter was, however, intended for use within the Offending Behaviour Course and not for Dayton to read.
21. I have considered the progress made by Panton since in custody. That progress is to his credit. The tariff is therefore set at 8 years.