A child rapist has been spared prison for a second time after his defense lawyer urged the judge to consider the impact on prison overcrowding. Ross Newman of Newport, England, was convicted of raping a child under 14 in December, with the sentencing judge saying, “The only reason you have escaped immediate custody today is because of the prison overcrowding crisis.”
Newman was convicted again this week of violating the terms of his suspended sentence but was again spared prison because facilities remain overcrowded.
The ongoing overcrowding—a policy choice by Labour and their Conservative predecessors, who have starved prison infrastructure of funding while lavishing billions on foreign aid and hotels for illegal immigrants—comes despite Labour’s move to free thousands of convicts early to ease the crisis.
This is because the state is imposing draconian sentences on anti-mass migration protesters for “crimes” such as chanting “Who the f**k is Allah?” at demonstrations and sharing “grossly offensive” Facebook posts.
Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer announced emergency measures this month to release around 5,500 prisoners, many of whom could be violent criminals, in a program known as SDS40. Among those reportedly set for early release is Lawson Natty, convicted of manslaughter for his role in the killing of a 14-year-old in November of 2022.
Jack Montgomery contributed to this report.
