THE Crown should appeal the sentence imposed upon a man convicted of rape on the grounds that it is ‘unduly lenient’, The Lord Advocate has revealed. 

Sean Hogg, 21, was convicted in the High Court on March 7 and was sentenced on April 3, 2023.

Hogg, from Hamilton, was ordered to carry out 270 hours of unpaid work.

He was also put under supervision and added to the sex offenders register for three years.

Kenny Donnelly, Deputy Crown Agent for the Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service,  said: “Sentence is quite rightly the domain of the independent judiciary. However, the law provides for some limited circumstances in which prosecutors have the right to appeal against sentences.

“The Appeal Court has set a high test to be satisfied for this to happen. The sentence must be unduly lenient, which means that it must be outwith the range of sentences which the sentencing Judge, taking account of all relevant factors, could reasonably have imposed.

"The question of Crown appeal against sentence in this case has been carefully considered, and the decision to place this matter before the Appeal Court has been communicated to the complainer through her representative.”