Sentences for serious manslaughter in healthcare should start at 12 years, report recommends

Sentences for gross negligence manslaughter could increase after the Sentencing Council for England and Wales concluded that prison terms imposed by judges were too short in some cases.

The council, an independent, non-departmental public body of the Ministry of Justice, is consulting on plans to issue comprehensive sentencing guidelines on manslaughter, in a consultation that closes on 10 October.1

Of the four types of manslaughter, the council has specified …