R v Tony Deeprose

A vehicle may be an other weapon for the enhanced sentencing provisions in Schedule 21 to the Sentencing Act 2020 and the attempted murder guideline. The issue is not the nature of the vehicle or the distance travelled. It is whether the offender took it to the scene intending to commit an offence with it, or to have it available as a weapon, and then used it as a weapon.

Use of a vehicle formed spontaneously after it has been taken to a place merely as transport does not satisfy that condition. A lengthy custodial term does not preclude an extended determinate sentence where the offender’s dangerousness makes that sentence necessary. A sentence is what the judge announces in open court; a court record cannot add an unannounced disqualification.

Two unrelated sentencing matters were listed together because they raised the common question whether a vehicle driven to the scene can be a weapon taken to the scene for sentencing purposes.

Deeprose was convicted at the Crown Court at Maidstone of two attempted murders after returning in a car and driving at two men. He received an extended determinate sentence. He challenged the high-culpability categorisation, the length and form of sentence, and the recorded driving disqualification.

Papworth was convicted at the Crown Court at Luton of murder, attempted murder and related offences after driving his car at victims. He sought leave to challenge his convictions and appealed his minimum term. The central issue was whether each offender had taken the car to the scene intending to use it as a weapon.

1. Deeprose’s appeal against sentence was dismissed, and Papworth’s renewed application for leave to appeal against conviction and appeal against sentence were refused and dismissed. The court nevertheless directed correction of Deeprose’s court record to remove the unannounced driving disqualification, and corrected the recording of Papworth’s minimum term.

2. Paragraph 4(2) of Schedule 21 to the Sentencing Act 2020 is not confined to knives. A car can be an other weapon. It falls within the provision where the offender took it to the scene intending to commit an offence with it, or to have it available as a weapon, and used it as a weapon in the murder. The equivalent high-culpability factor in the attempted murder guideline applies on the same basis. The court approved the analysis in R v Beckford [2014] EWCA Crim 1299 that intentional use of a car in this way can involve high culpability.

3. The required intent must exist when the vehicle is taken to the scene. A driver who takes a car somewhere for an unrelated purpose, then uses it as a weapon on the spur of the moment, does not meet the condition. The inquiry is fact-specific; short distances and borderline cases do not justify excluding vehicles from the provision.

4. On the findings properly open to the respective sentencing judges, both Deeprose and Papworth had driven to the relevant locations intending to use their cars as weapons. Deeprose’s offences therefore fell within high culpability. The 27-year custodial term was not manifestly excessive, and the judge was entitled to impose an extended determinate sentence despite the relatively short extended-licence period because of Deeprose’s dangerousness.

5. A sentence is the sentence announced by the judge in open court: Leitch and others [2024] EWCA Crim 563. The judge had not announced any period of disqualification for Deeprose and could not delegate its calculation to counsel for later inclusion in the record. The appeal’s dismissal prevented the court from correcting that unlawful omission by imposing a disqualification. Papworth’s stated minimum term of 34 years less remand time was to be recorded, consistently with Sesay and others [2024] EWCA Crim 483, as 33 years and 106 days.

• Court of Appeal (Criminal Division): Granted Deeprose leave to appeal but dismissed his sentence appeal. Refused Papworth leave to appeal against conviction and dismissed his sentence appeal.

• Crown Court at Maidstone: On 6 October 2023, HHJ Statman sentenced Deeprose for two attempted murders and associated offences to an extended determinate sentence with a 27-year custodial term and a three-year extended licence.

• Crown Court at Luton: Papworth pleaded guilty to perverting the course of public justice on 27 February 2023. On 3 July 2023 he was convicted of murder, attempted murder and attempting to cause grievous bodily harm with intent. On 3 August 2023, Judge Simon imposed life imprisonment for murder with a minimum term stated as 34 years less 259 days on remand.