Latest news with #KyleClifford
Times
07-05-2025
- Politics
- Times
Criminals will be forced to attend their sentencing or face tougher punishment
Judges will be able to further punish offenders who refuse to attend their sentencing hearing as part of measures being introduced on Wednesday. Criminals who refuse to leave their prison cell, as in the cases of the killer nurse Lucy Letby and the triple murderer Kyle Clifford, will have more years added to their sentence. For those serving whole life orders, judges will be able to impose further sanctions, including confinement to a cell and loss of privileges such as extra time in the gym. Lucy Letby, who was found guilty of murdering seven newborns, refused to attend her sentencing hearing ELIZABETH COOK/PA Prison staff will also be allowed to use 'reasonable force' to compel a criminal to the dock. Many killers have refused to appear in court for hearings or sentencing, preferring not to face the gaze of their victim's families. Alex Davies-Jones, the minister for victims, praised families who have campaigned for the change. She said: 'I would like to thank the remarkable families of Olivia Pratt-Korbel, Jan Mustafa, Sabina Nessa and Zara Aleena and countless others who have campaigned tirelessly for offenders to have to face the reality of their crimes by attending their sentencing. Justice isn't optional — we'll make sure criminals face their victims.' Clifford, who was given a whole life order in March for murdering the wife and two daughters of John Hunt, the BBC racing commentator, was not even on a video link for the trial. The former soldier, who uses a wheelchair, had chosen to stay in his cell at Belmarsh even though staff at the jail and the court had gone out of their way to ensure his appearance, choosing Cambridge crown court for the trial as it was wheelchair accessible. Clifford was paralysed from the waist down after shooting himself with a crossbow when police closed in on him after he attacked the Hunt family in July last year. Jordan McSweeney failed to appear at Woolwich crown court in 2022 when he was sentenced to 38 years for the murder of Zara Aleena. Thomas Cashman refused to enter the dock when he was jailed for at least 42 years in 2023 for shooting Olivia Pratt-Korbel, nine, in her home. Shabana Mahmood, the justice secretary, said: 'This bill will deliver long overdue reforms to ensure victims see justice done and are given the vital support they need as they rebuild their lives.' The bill will also prevent parents who have been convicted of sexually abusing their children from requesting updates about schooling or seeking to interfere with the child's activities. • Concerts have better security than some jails, says top prison officer The victims' commissioner will be able to play a bigger role in individual cases which raise systemic issues ensuring lessons are learned to benefit other victims or witnesses. Claire Waxman, London's independent victims' commissioner, said: 'For too long, offenders found guilty of some of the most heinous crimes have refused to attend sentencing hearings and face justice, their victims, and their victims' families. 'This bill will also bring in other important reforms I have long called for, such as measures to remove parental responsibility from convicted child sex offenders, to ensure these victims are better protected, and new powers to strengthen the vital work of the victims' commissioner.' Baroness Newlove, the victims' commissioner for England and Wales, said: 'This marks a step towards a more accountable system that puts victims first.'
Daily Mirror
28-04-2025
- Politics
- Daily Mirror
Law on crossbow sales to be tightened after spate of sickening attacks
People buying the dangerous weapons online will have to submit photo ID at the point of sale and again on delivery under a fresh crackdown on deadly crossbows by the Home Office The law on crossbow sales will be tightened after a spate of sickening attacks. People buying the dangerous weapons online will have to submit photo ID at the point of sale and again on delivery under a fresh crackdown. Plans to introduce a stringent two-step age verification system for retailers selling knives online did not originally include crossbows. But the Home Office has now widened its Crime and Police Bill to include the lethal weapons. Calls to clamp down on crossbows were renewed this week after two women were injured in an attack involving a crossbow and firearm in Headingley, Leeds, on Saturday. The government has previously come under pressure to tighten the law after vile killer Kyle Clifford murdered Carol Hunt, 61, and her daughters Louise, 25, and Hannah, 28, with a crossbow at their family home in Bushey, near Watford, last year. A Home Office minister said further action on how the Government plans 'to limit the availability and accessibility of crossbows in this country" will be published shortly. Archery's governing body has previously voiced concern that a crossbow ban might affect some archers who find using the equipment easier. At the moment it is only illegal to buy a crossbow if you're under 18, and there is no need to have a licence. However people can be jailed for up to four years for carrying one in public without "reasonable excuse". Ministers have faced calls to bring in licences for crossbows similar to those required by gun owners. In early 2024, the Tory government gathered evidence on whether to bring in greater controls on crossbows. Crime and Policing Minister Dame Diana Johnson told the House of Commons yesterday: "We are very aware of concerns about the use of crossbows in violent attacks. The previous government held a call for evidence on licencing systems that could apply to crossbows last year to which they did not respond. "As part of our wider work to get dangerous and lethal weapons off Britain's streets, we will shortly be publishing our response to that consultation setting out how we plan to go further to limit the availability and accessibility of crossbows in this country." Labour 's Crime and Policing Bill includes a package of measures to strengthen the law on knife sales online, which together will be known as 'Ronan's Law'. It is named after Ronan Kanda, a 16-year-old who was stabbed to death with a 20-inch ninja sword that his killer had bought online. He was murdered as he walked home in Wolverhampton in 2022 in a horrific case of mistaken identity.
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The Independent
18-03-2025
- The Independent
We're getting the ‘manosphere' all wrong – and here's why
S tephen Graham and Jack Thorne's new four-part drama, Adolescence, landed on Netflix this week. Filmed as a set of intense single-take chapters, the series describes 13-year-old Jamie Miller, who stands accused of a violent murder. It tackles the issue of online misogyny, the 'manosphere' and its villainous poster boy Andrew Tate, returning the problem to the forefront of the public imagination. This content comes hot on the heels of Kyle Clifford 's sentencing last week for the brutal murders of a mother and two daughters, where the court heard of Clifford's exposure to Andrew Tate's podcast content hours before his attack. I have spent the past two years exploring the impact of masculine influencers on young men and boys, analysing media content in depth, and talking with 100 young men and the adults in their lives – and working with a range of organisations to explore constructive solutions to this problem of our times. During that period, we have seen reams of media headlines, a series of horrific real-world impacts like those of Kyle Clifford, and a great deal of concern in schools, governments, families and the media. We've seen Andrew Tate removed from social media platforms, only to be reinstated to X by Elon Musk, and witnessed the terrifying impact of the Trump campaign mobilising manosphere-adjacent influencers to pull young male voters into their orbit. The impact of the manosphere has never been greater, and many intelligent, well-meaning people and organisations are trying to grasp what to do about it. To have any hope of having a positive impact on this bleak situation, we have to look at the phenomenon in the round. It's not enough to view masculine influencers as a problem to fix or as a content trend to be squashed. Cultural narratives and new ideologies don't emerge and thrive in a vacuum. They develop in response to the social context around them; they thrive because they're meaningful for a huge number of people; and they survive because they adapt and remain relevant. We have to examine why the manosphere's predominantly young male audience is engaging with its content, what about it connects with them, and how it works. We must look beyond the noise and disregard our own reactions to truly grasp its power. Boys and young men today feel ostracised by what they see as the dominant conversations in society. They find themselves problematised in gender narratives, framed as perpetrators of problematic behaviour, and portrayed as potential aggressors – before they have so much as made friends with a girl. They've fallen behind their female classmates at school. They're socially isolated – spending increasing amounts of time online, alone in their rooms. They're prey to unrealistic body image standards, perpetuated by fitness influencers and a whole host of brand and media content (have you noticed how every topless man in a Netflix drama has a six-pack, even if they live in the 17th century?). In effect, boys and young men find themselves removed from society, struggling to meet impossible standards, excluded from the conversation, and failing fast. And they're desperately looking for a means to get out of this situation. The initial route to the manosphere for the vast majority of boys is via an innocent online search for 'how-to' content about fitness, dating or cryptocurrency. They're searching for guidance around how to get fit, get rich and get the girl. What they encounter are charismatic male influencers who play the role of father figures, offering them clear direction in motivational language. These figures make them feel seen and supported. They offer a virtual space, just for young men, using language that connects with a masculine social media audience. They act as role models who have got young men's backs, who have their best interests at heart. Once the influencers have got them there, they upend their worldview. They strongly transmit a model of hyper-masculinity that is traditional and restrictive, rooted in notions of emotional control, physical strength and solitary individualism. They argue for a return to 'traditional' gender dynamics – man as provider and protector, woman as mother and caregiver. A place of surety that harks back to a time when everything was better – for men at least. These traditional gender constructs then become supercharged the deeper young men lose themselves in this content maelstrom – until the narrative peaks into a form of violent misogyny: women are the source of your problems, and feminism has broken the world. And this point is where the majority of us enter the story. This is the part we know about. It's what we read in articles highlighting the monstrous rhetoric of Andrew Tate. It's what we hear in the trial of Kyle Clifford. But we're missing the entire journey and why young men come here in the first place. They come for guidance and motivation that they don't find elsewhere; they come to feel important and that their feelings are valid; they come because they're desperate to change the situation in which they find themselves. The societal demonisation of young men is not a new phenomenon. David Cameron exhorted us to 'hug a hoodie' back in 2006. Young men have been a social scapegoat for generations. And this is where the problem starts. Until we welcome young men into the tent, understand their needs, validate their feelings and provide solutions that help their lot, there will always be another Andrew Tate, another Kyle Clifford, and another Jamie Miller.
The Independent
16-03-2025
- The Independent
We're getting the ‘manosphere' all wrong - and here's why
and Jack Thorne's new four-part drama, Adolescence, landed on Netflix this week. Filmed as a set of intense single-take chapters, the series describes 13-year-old Jamie Miller, who stands accused of a violent murder. It tackles the issue of online misogyny, the 'manosphere' and its villainous poster boy Andrew Tate, returning the problem to the forefront of the public imagination. This content comes hot on the heels of Kyle Clifford 's sentencing last week for the brutal murders of a mother and two daughters, where the court heard of Clifford's exposure to Andrew Tate podcast content, hours before his attack. I have spent the past two years exploring the impact of masculine influencers on young men and boys, analysing media content in depth, and talking with 100 young men and the adults in their lives – and working with a range of organisations to explore constructive solutions to this problem of our times. During that period, we have seen reams of media headlines, a series of horrific real-world impacts like those of Kyle Clifford, and a great deal of concern in schools, governments, families, and the media. We've seen Andrew Tate removed from social media platforms, only to be reinstated to X by Elon Musk, and witnessed the terrifying impact of the Trump campaign mobilising manosphere-adjacent influencers to pull young male voters into their sphere. The impact of the manosphere has never been greater, and many intelligent, well-meaning people and organisations are trying to grasp what to do about it. To have any hope of having a positive impact on this bleak situation, we have to look at the phenomenon in the round. It's not enough to view masculine influencers as a problem to fix, or as a content trend to be squashed. Cultural narratives and new ideologies don't emerge and thrive in a vacuum. They develop in response to the social context around them; they thrive because they're meaningful for a huge number of people; and they survive because they adapt and remain relevant. We have to examine why the manosphere's predominantly young male audience is engaging with its content, what about it connects with them, and how it works. To look beyond the noise and disregard our own reactions to truly grasp its power. Boys and young men today feel ostracised by what they see as the dominant conversations in society. They find themselves problematised in gender narratives, framed as perpetrators of problematic behaviour, and portrayed as potential aggressors – before they have so much as made friends with a girl. They've fallen behind their female classmates at school. They're socially isolated – spending increasing amounts of time online, alone in their rooms. They're prey to unrealistic body image standards, perpetuated by fitness influencers and a whole host of brand and media content (have you ever noticed how every topless man in a Netflix drama has a six-pack, even if they live in the 17th century?). In effect, boys and young men find themselves removed from society, struggling to meet impossible standards, excluded from the conversation, and failing fast. And they're desperately looking for a means to get out of this situation. The initial route to the manosphere for the vast majority of boys is via an innocent online search for 'how-to' content about fitness, dating or cryptocurrency. They're searching for guidance around how to get fit, get rich and get the girl. What they encounter are charismatic male influencers who play the role of father figures, offering them clear direction in motivational language. These figures make them feel seen and supported. They offer a virtual space, just for young men, using language that connects with a masculine social media audience. They act as role models who have got young men's backs, who have their best interests at heart. Once the influencers have got them there, they upend their worldview. They strongly transmit a model of hyper-masculinity that is traditional and restrictive, rooted in notions of emotional control, physical strength, and solitary individualism. They argue for a return to 'traditional' gender dynamics – man as provider and protector, woman as mother and caregiver. A place of surety, that harks back to a time when everything was better – for men at least. These traditional gender constructs then become supercharged the deeper young men lose themselves in this content maelstrom – until the narrative peaks into a form of violent misogyny: women are the source of your problems, and feminism has broken the world. And this point is where the majority of us enter the story. This is the part we know about. It's what we read in articles highlighting the monstrous rhetoric of Andrew Tate. It's what we hear in the trial of Kyle Clifford. But we're missing the entire journey, and why young men come here in the first place. They come for guidance and motivation that they don't find elsewhere; they come to feel important, and that their feelings are valid; they come because they're desperate to change the situation in which they find themselves. The societal demonisation of young men is not a new phenomenon. David Cameron exhorted us to 'hug a hoodie' back in 2006. Young men have been a social scapegoat for generations. And this is where the problem starts. Until we welcome young men into the tent, understand their needs, validate their feelings, and provide solutions that help their lot, there will always be another Andrew Tate, another Kyle Clifford, and another Jamie Miller. Saul Parker is an anthropologist, strategist and the CEO and co-founder of The Good Side, an insight, strategy and creative studio focused on cultural change.
Telegraph
12-03-2025
- Telegraph
The cowardly copycats avoiding sentencing must be stopped
There was a moment while I binge-watched the ITV drama, A Cruel Love, about Ruth Ellis, the last woman to be hanged in Britain, when I put down my coffee and sat bolt upright, silenced. I watched as a black cap was placed on the head of the judge and he passed sentence, telling Ellis of her death by hanging for the murder of her lover. It was the moment of reckoning. I would not for one moment urge the return of capital punishment. The story of Ellis, hanged in 1955, is a reminder that the legal system was right to later introduce the defence of diminished responsibility while other cases showed how dreadful mistakes can be made about guilt. But the passing of a sentence, even without capital punishment, matters. It is the outcome of judgment and tells the victim's family, and indeed, all of us, that justice has been done. The convicted criminal faces avenging terrible deeds. Except now we have a growing trend for those convicted to avoid such reckoning. On Tuesday, Kyle Clifford, found guilty of the murder of Carol Hunt, wife of the BBC's racing commentator, John Hunt, and of their daughters, Hannah and Louise, refused to come to court to listen to the judge pass sentence. Clifford is the latest in a line of killers who have declined to attend court for their sentencing. Think of Thomas Cashman who shot dead nine year old Olivia Pratt-Korbel, or Jordan McSweeney, who sexually assaulted and murdered 35-year-old law graduate Zara Aleena. Sometimes killers who profess their innocence do this, such as Lucy Letby, but others where there is indisputable proof, like Kyle Clifford, just refuse to listen. Surely the time has come to put a stop to the cowardly copycats who want to follow in the footsteps of their fellow murderers and evade this moment when they hear their fate. One reason for this growing refusal of convicted murderers to attend sentencing may well be the introduction of Victims' Personal Statements being given in court, introduced by the Victims' Charter in 1996. Lawyers for the prosecution and the defence continue to outline the case in major criminal trials, and interrogate witnesses, but nothing brings home the consequence of someone's evil actions more powerfully than hearing from those most directly affected. As John Hunt and his daughter Amy read their statements, those in court, including police officers, wept as they listened. Clifford, however, avoided hearing something so harrowing. The previous government attempted to put an end to these refusals by pledging to introduce a criminal justice bill which would allow 'reasonable force' to be used to make criminals appear in the dock. But that bill, due to the calling of the general election, fell. Families, including Cheryl, the mother of Olivia Pratt-Korbel, have campaigned for killers to be compelled to attend sentencing. But it can be difficult. In Kyle Clifford's case, the judge said he did not insist he came to court because he did not want him potentially disrupting proceedings. But the Starmer government must surely legislate some means of doing this, such as keeping a convicted killer refusing to attend court in their prison cell, while sentencing is broadcast to it. On Tuesday, John Hunt said in his impact statement how much he regretted not being able to speak directly to Kyle Clifford: ' I so wanted to deliver these words, eye to eye, with Kyle '. We no longer have eye for an eye, tooth for a tooth, Old Testament-style punishment in this country. There is no judge with a black cap on his head telling the killer in the dock 'May God have mercy on your soul', as they pronounce death by hanging. But we must surely have eye to eye sentencing – for the sake of families like the Hunts, and for all of us, wanting justice to be done. Judges have raised concerns – and rightly – that bringing a screaming criminal with force to the dock would be highly disruptive. But there should surely be ways and means, such as broadcasting sentencing to their prison cell if they refuse to attend court. The Sunak government planned to introduce legislation about this but it fell because of the election. It must be revived.
