Attempted murder
Date Updated: January 2012
Title: Offences against the person
Offence: Attempted Murder
Legislation: Criminal Attempts Act 1981 section 4(1)
Commencement Date:
Mode of Trial: Indictable only
Statutory Limitations & Maximum Penalty: Life imprisonment
Sentencing Range: Serious specified violent offence
Relevant Sentencing Guidelines
The SGC definitive guideline 'Attempted Murder' applies to offenders sentenced on or after 27 July 2009. This is within Archbold supplement at K-221
General factors, culpability and harm
- Attempted murder is a serious offence for the purposes of the provisions in the Criminal Justice Act 2003 for dealing with dangerous offenders. When sentencing an offender convicted of this offence, in many circumstances a court may need to consider imposing a discretionary life sentence or one of the sentences for public protection prescribed in the Act.
- The starting points and ranges will be relevant when imposing a determinate sentence and when fixing any minimum term that may be necessary. When setting the minimum term to be served within an indeterminate sentence, in accordance with normal practice that term will usually be half the equivalent determinate sentence.
- Attempted murder requires an intention to kill. Accordingly, an offender convicted of this offence will have demonstrated a high level of culpability. Even so, the precise level of culpability will vary in line with the circumstances of the offence and whether the offence was planned or spontaneous. The use of a weapon may influence this assessment.
- There are critical differences between murder and attempted murder; not only is the intended result not achieved but also, for attempted murder, there must have been an intention to kill whereas a charge of murder may arise where the intention was to inflict grievous bodily harm.
- The level of injury or harm sustained by the victim as well as any harm that the offence was intended to cause or might foreseeably have caused, must be taken into account and reflected in the sentence imposed.
- The degree of harm will vary greatly. Where there is low harm and high culpability, culpability is more significant. Even in cases where a low level of injury (or no injury) has been caused, an offence of attempted murder will be extremely serious.
- Where the degree of harm actually caused to the victim of an attempted murder is negligible, it is inevitable that this will impact on the overall assessment of offence seriousness.
- However, although the degree or lack of physical or psychological harm suffered by a victim may generally influence sentence, the statutory definition of harm encompasses not only the harm actually caused by an offence but also any harm that the offence was intended to cause or might foreseeably have caused; since the offence can only be committed where there is an intention to kill, an offence of attempted murder will always involve, in principle, the most serious level of harm.
- A first time offender is a person who does not have a conviction which, by virtue of section 143(2) of the Criminal Justice Act 2003, must be treated as an aggravating factor.
SGC guidelines table
The guidelines set out below apply to a first time adult offender who has been convicted after a trial.
Level 1
The most serious offences including those which (if the charge had been murder) would come within para. 4 or para. 5 of schedule 21 to the Criminal Justice Act 2003 [see below for its terms)
- Nature of offence: Serious and long term physical or psychological harm
Starting point: 30 years custody
Sentencing range: 27 - 35 years custody - Nature of offence: Some physical or psychological harm
Starting point: 20 years custody
Sentencing range: 17 - 25 years custody - Nature of offence: Little or no physical or psychological harm
Starting point: 15 years custody
Sentencing range: 12 - 20 years custody
Level 2
Other planned attempt to kill
- Nature of offence: Serious and long term physical or psychological harm
Starting point: 20 years custody
Sentencing range: 17 - 25 years custody - Nature of offence: Some physical or psychological harm
Starting point: 15 years custody
Sentencing range: 12 - 20 years custody - Nature of offence: Little or no physical or psychological harm
Starting point: 10 years custody
Sentencing range: 7 - 15 years custody
Level 3
Other spontaneous attempt to kill
- Nature of offence: Serious and long term physical or psychological harm
Starting point: 15 years custody
Sentencing range: 12 - 20 years custody - Nature of offence: Some physical or psychological harm
Starting point: 12 years custody
Sentencing range: 9 - 17 years custody - Nature of offence: Little or no physical or psychological harm
Starting point: 9 years custody
Sentencing range: 6 - 14 years custody
Level 1 includes offences with any paragraph 4 or 5 factors
Paragraph 4 - whole life order. Paragraph 4(2) lists these factors:-
- two or more victims involving specified aggravating features
- murder of child involving abduction, sexual or sadistic motivation
- murder for political, religious or ideological cause
- previous conviction for murder.
Paragraph 5 - minimum term of 30 years. Paragraph 5(2) lists these factors:-
- murder of a police or prison officer in the course of duty
- involving use of a firearm or explosive
- for gain, such as robbery, burglary or for payment
- intended to obstruct or interfere with the course of justice
- involving sexual or sadistic conduct
- murder of two or more persons
- racially or religiously aggravated or aggravated by sexual orientation
- murder falling within paragraph 4(2) by an offender aged under 21
Specific aggravating factors
- victim particularly vulnerable, for example, because of age or disability
- mental or physical suffering inflicted on the victim
- abuse of a position of trust
- use of duress or threats against another person to facilitate the commission of the offence
- victim was providing a public service or performing a public duty
The presence of one or more aggravating features will indicate a more severe sentence within the suggested range and, if the aggravating feature(s) are exceptionally serious, the case will move up to the next level.
Specific mitigating factors
- offender suffered from any mental disorder or mental disability which lowered his degree of culpability
- offender was provoked (for example, by prolonged stress)
- offender acted to any extent in self-defence
- age of the offender
The SGC guideline 'Overarching Principles: Seriousness' sets out aggravating and mitigating factors applicable to a wide range of cases; some are already reflected in the factors referred to above. Care needs to be taken to ensure that there is no double counting where an essential element of the offence charged might, in other circumstances, be an aggravating factor.
An additional statutory aggravating factor has been introduced by the Counter-Terrorism Act 2008 for prescribed offences which include attempted murder.
This guideline is not intended to provide for an offence found to be based on a genuine belief that the murder would have been an act of mercy.
If the offence was committed in a domestic context, consider the SGC guideline 'Overarching Principles: Domestic Violence' (see Archbold at K-82)
If the victim is a child, consider the SGC guideline 'Overarching Principles: Assaults on children and Cruelty to a child'.
Aggravation based on victim's race, religion, disability or sexual orientation
Most such cases will be Level 1 cases.
If the victim is particularly vulnerable because of disability, a specific aggravating factor applies.
Relevant Sentencing Case Law predating the SGC definitive guideline
In R v Ford [2006] 1 Cr App R (S) 36, the only former guideline case, the Court of Appeal held that because provocation and diminished responsibility are not available as defences to attempted murder, comparison with manslaughter sentences would be appropriate in cases where such defences would have succeeded had the charge been murder.
Recent Decisions reported in CSP at B2-1.3 and Banks on Sentence Volume 2 Pages 860 et sequitur.
Ancillary Orders:
- This offence is subject to the terms of the Safeguarding Vulnerable Groups Act 2006.
