A sentencing judge had erred in failing to alert a young offender to the fact that he was minded to make a finding that he had used a weapon in an assault occasioning actual bodily harm before going on to sentence him, thereby denying the offender the opportunity to address him on the point. In those circumstances, it was appropriate to replace his sentence of nine months' detention with a suspended sentence of six months' detention.

CA (Crim Div) (Davis LJ, Silber J, Openshaw J)

27/03/2013