At the High Court in Edinburgh Lord Malcolm sentenced three accused to extended sentences of nine years after they pled guilty to assault charges involving the torture of a young girl in the car park of the Omni Centre, Greenside Place, Edinburgh.

On sentencing Lord Malcolm made the following statement in Court:

“The prolonged torture and abuse inflicted by you on a young person has created a sense of shock, horror and perhaps even despair, not least because of the youth of all involved. As a result of your uncontrolled cruelty and violence, your victim’s life was in real danger. No words of mine can adequately describe her ordeal and the harm it has caused.

"Much could, and no doubt will be said about how and why this happened and as to an anguished society’s response to it. Whatever else, it is plain that the disinhibiting effect of the huge quantities of alcohol consumed by all of you played a significant part.

"I have taken into account all that has been said on your behalf this morning. I have also had regard to the detailed Social Enquiry Reports, the Risk Assessments on each of you from psychologists, the advice of the Children’s Panel and the other material presented to me this morning, including a letter from one of you. I have a wealth of information as to your backgrounds, your previous behaviour and your personal circumstances.

"A review of the reports shows that for each of you one or more of the following factors applies. They are:

• A chaotic, abusive and violent home background, characterised by parental neglect and the absence of appropriate guidance and boundaries;
• Active involvement in Edinburgh’s youth gang culture, where anti-social behaviour and aggression, including organised aggression, are used to gain or maintain respect and status within the group;
• Underage alcohol abuse; and
• Disengagement from education.

"I am not saying that all of these apply to each of you, but this is an outline of the general picture which emerges from the reports.

"Of course neither the consumption of alcohol nor your troubled backgrounds dilute your own responsibility for what happened. Even for people so young, self-induced intoxication is no defence to nor an excuse for what happened; and most young people from disruptive backgrounds do not indulge in violence, let alone such extreme violence.

"While, as I said earlier, much could be said on the wider issues, my duty is to identify the appropriate punishment for each of you, and to set the outline for how you will be supervised and dealt with in the future. This is not an easy task, especially since the relevant considerations do not all point in the same direction. For example, I must mark and reflect society’s shock and revulsion at your conduct, and its concern for your victim and the damage done to her. However the law also recognises that a child offender bears less personal responsibility and thus less culpability than an adult offender, and that a sentence which would be appropriate for an adult may seem impossibly long and crushing to a young person. Also, inherent in youth there is the possibility of change, one might hope the likelihood of change.

"I note from the reports that the support and guidance which you have received on remand, and of course the removal of alcohol, have already been reflected in at least some changes for the better.

"In short, I must weigh the interests of your victim; the interests of the public at large; and your own interests as children. I must attempt to tailor a sentence which strikes an appropriate balance between retribution, deterrence and rehabilitation; bearing in mind that you are children yourselves with the possibility ahead of major reform and thereafter mature and responsible adult lives.

"All of that said, I consider that I must not lose sight of the depravity of your cruelty and violence, and the very damaging impact on your victim. Thus there is no doubt in my mind that, notwithstanding your youth, for each of you a custodial disposal is required. Further I consider that special measures are necessary for the additional protection of the public. Thus I will impose what are called extended sentences. Those sentences will be the same for each of you, and I will now explain them to you.

"Your extended sentences fall into two quite distinct parts. The first part is called the custodial term. As its name suggests, it is the time which you should spend in detention in a place and under such conditions as are specified by the Scottish Ministers. When I fix this period legislation requires me to take into account your early pleas of guilty. But for those pleas I would have set the detention period at six years, but having regard to Appeal Court guidance on this issue, and given the early stage of your pleas, I reduce it to four years. Part of the thinking behind this approach is that you are entitled to credit for avoiding the need for your victim to give evidence.

"The second part of the sentence is called the extension period. It is the period after your release from detention when you will be on licence, again on conditions fixed by the Scottish Ministers. I will explain more about this part of your sentence shortly, but meantime I fix it at five years, beginning on the expiry of the detention period.

"The overall result is that you each receive an extended sentence of nine years, which will be backdated to the date of your remand, namely 1st September 2009.

"In addition to punishment you will now be given structured lives with appropriate controls and boundaries, an education, and professional care and supervision. It is very much in your own interests that you take full advantage of all that will be available to you, both when in detention and afterwards. It is encouraging and to your credit that the early signs are that you have responded positively to the settled daily regime on remand. As you go through your teenage years, to a large extent it will be up to you whether you benefit from all of this and emerge at the end as reformed and redeemed individuals, ready to play a full part in society.

"No doubt many people will be aware of the Government’s early release policies, which operate quite separately from the sentences imposed by the Court. However, in this regard I want you and others to understand one important matter. The nine year extended sentences which I have passed today do have a continuing and direct impact on each of you until their eventual expiry in mid-2018. In particular, when you are released from detention, whenever it might be, it will be on specific terms which will include strict compliance with a number of conditions and controls. Should you breach any of those, or should you commit another offence while on licence, then you will be subject to return to custody under and in terms of the sentences which I am imposing today. This would be over and above any punishment for a new offence. The result is that if you do not learn the appropriate lessons and if you do not put your lives on track, then come 2018 you could still be in custody in respect of this offence.

"So lest there be any uncertainty or misunderstanding, the nine year period of these sentences is not a matter of mere words. If your attitudes and behaviour do not change, then you can be returned to custody at any time, no matter what early release provisions are in operation, and even if the first part of the sentence, that is the detention period of four years, has expired.

"To end on a more positive note, if you do accept your punishment; if you do develop genuine remorse for your conduct and a real concern for your victim; and if you change your attitudes and behaviour, then you may yet emerge as responsible young adults ready to take your place in society. Whether that happens will depend on how you react and respond from now on. It is up to you.”