Introduction
We looked in January at the case of Davina Ayrton, a trans woman who was found guilty of raping a 15 year old in 2004. Sentence was adjourned, and on 4th March 2016 Ms Ayrton was sentenced to 8 years in prison.
Facts and Sentence
The facts have not been that well reported, but it seems that Ms Ayrton raped the victim in a garage. During this, the victim “screamed and shouted during the attack and told Ayrton to stop“.
Apart from the change in her gender, there was nothing reported about Ms Ayrton’s background other than that she was “abused as a child and was sorry for what she has done“.
Although the offence is an historic one, the Judge would have been bound to apply the Sentencing Guidelines as they stand today (see page 10).
Without knowing more details, it’s hard to say how the Judge came to the sentence that he did. We would guess that the severity of the attack and the youth of the victim made this a Category 2B offence, with a starting point of 8 years.
The sentence of 8 years seems about right, and we wouldn’t expect an appeal to be successful. As to the reason why it was reported – it seems that Ms Ayrton will serve her sentence in a male prison.