REGINA v BRODIE ROBERT GROOME

In manslaughter by an unlawful act, a case caused by a single punch will often fall within category C of the Sentencing Council guideline, but may fall within category B. Classification is fact-specific and requires a balanced assessment of all relevant circumstances. Where the case lies near the boundary, the sentencer should identify the appropriate category and, if necessary, adjust its starting point before applying aggravating and mitigating factors. A category B case may warrant a downward adjustment where the punch was not delivered with very great force and the circumstances did not obviously heighten the risk of really serious injury. The guideline must not be applied mechanically.

The appellant was convicted of manslaughter at the Crown Court at Ipswich after the jury rejected his claim of self-defence. He had punched a man during a drunken altercation, causing him to fall and sustain the fatal head injury. The sentencing judge placed the offence in category B under the Sentencing Council guideline, adopted a starting point of 12 years, adjusted it upwards for aggravating factors and imposed 13 years’ imprisonment.

On appeal, the appellant argued that a single punch was insufficient for category B and that the sentence was excessive. The central issues were the correct culpability category and whether an adjustment to the guideline starting point should precede consideration of aggravating and mitigating factors.

1. Appeal allowed. The sentence of 13 years’ imprisonment was manifestly excessive. It was quashed and a sentence of 10 years’ imprisonment substituted. The appellant was to serve two thirds in custody before release on licence.
2. The manslaughter guideline contains four culpability categories and no separate harm assessment. Its characteristics are indicators rather than a mechanical formula. The sentencer must balance them to reach a fair assessment of overall culpability in the circumstances of the offence.
3. The court approved the approach in R v Coyle [2020] EWCA Crim 484 and R v Taiwo [2020] EWCA Crim 902: a single-punch case will often be category C but may be category B, depending on all relevant circumstances. In a case near the boundary, the sentencer must select the appropriate category and may make an initial upward or downward adjustment to the category starting point before applying aggravating and mitigating factors. The overlap between the category ranges supports that approach.
4. The sentencing judge was entitled to place this offence in category B because the punch carried a high risk of really serious injury which ought to have been obvious. However, an initial downward adjustment was required. The punch was not struck with very great force, the victim was not much smaller or weaker, and the circumstances did not obviously increase the risk of really serious injury. The offence therefore fell towards the lower end of category B, close to the upper end of category C. The aggravating factors substantially outweighed the limited mitigation, but the correct final sentence was 10 years.

1. Crown Court at Ipswich: Following a conviction for manslaughter in September 2021, the appellant was sentenced on 2 December 2021 to 13 years’ imprisonment.
2. Court of Appeal (Criminal Division): On 13 April 2022, the court allowed the appeal, quashed the sentence and substituted 10 years’ imprisonment: [2022] EWCA Crim 539.