R v Uittenbosch

The applicant in this matter sought a reopening of his sentence under section 188 of the Penalties and Sentences Act 1992, challenging the commencement date of his sentence of imprisonment. The applicant was sentenced to a period of imprisonment as an adult, which was to be cumulative on a sentence imposed on him while he was a juvenile. The central issue before the court was whether the cumulative sentence should begin on the date the applicant was entitled to the benefit of a fixed release order under the juvenile sentence, or from the end of the entire period of detention imposed on him as a juvenile.

The court found that the applicant's sentence of imprisonment should begin from the date he was entitled to the benefit of a fixed release order under the juvenile sentence. The court held that a sentence of imprisonment imposed on an adult should run concurrently with a sentence imposed on a juvenile if the latter is still serving that sentence. In this case, the applicant had been sentenced as an adult to a period of imprisonment that was to run cumulatively on the sentence imposed on him while he was a juvenile. The court considered the applicant's entitlement to the benefit of a fixed release order under the juvenile sentence, and determined that the cumulative sentence should begin on the date the applicant was entitled to that benefit.

The final orders of the court were that the sentence of three years imprisonment imposed by the court on the applicant on 29 May 2003 began on 15 June 2003. This was the date on which the applicant was entitled to the benefit of a fixed release order under the juvenile sentence. The court declared that the sentence should run from this date, and not from the end of the entire period of detention imposed on the applicant as a juvenile.