Supreme Court to rule on fixed jail terms for firearm crimes

Department of Justice officials will be keeping an eye on a Supreme Court decision last week which could have implications for the future of mandatory sentences.

Under attack in the case is the constitutionality of the compulsory minimum five-year sentence for second time firearms offenders under section 27A(1) of the Firearms Act 1964.

Mandatory sentences have become a popular political tool in the last couple of decades for drugs and firearms offences. Last ...