Hare coursing offenders are set to receive harsher sentences from next month onwards as the Sentencing Council has published the UK’s first ever guidelines for hare coursing offences today (Thursday, May 14) .
The guidelines, which will come into effect on June 1, is designed to “ensure courts fully recognise the harm these offences cause when determining their seriousness.”
Within the new guidelines, four offences associated with hare coursing are covered, chosen based on a 12-week public consultation and changes introduced by Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts (PCSC) Act 2022.
The four offences covered within the framework include: trespassing with intent to pursue hares with dogs; being equipped for hare coursing activity; trespassing during daytime in search of game; and taking or destroying game during nighttime.
The guideline will also recognise a “range of aggravating factors that reflect the realities of hare coursing activity, including the use of social media to record and promote offences, offending in the presence of children, and breach of a community protection notice.”
According to the Sentencing Council, courts will be signposted to two new orders, Dog Disqualification Orders and Recovery Orders, which were introduced by the PCSC Act 2022 and now also fall under the new guideline.
The Sentencing Council outlined that these orders allow courts to disqualify offenders from owning a dog, and order offenders to repay the costs of a dog’s seizure and detention.
Sentencing Council
A 12-week-long public consultation was conducted by the Sentencing Council before it published its new framework for hare coursing offences, with the council stating that the “responses contributed greatly to the definitive guideline.”
Judge Simon Drew, who is a member of the Sentencing Council said: ““Illegal activities associated with hare coursing cause real harm – to wildlife, to property, to farmers and their families and to the wider rural communities that often deal with the repercussions of this aggressive crime.
“The strength of feeling we heard through our consultation made clear just how seriously this issue is felt.
“This guideline ensures the courts have the tools to reflect that harm in sentencing,” Drew added.
Consultation
Through the consultation, the Sentencing Council noted that responses highlighted “the serious impact hare coursing can have”, whether that be “small, informal events” or “large group activity”.
The consultation also reportedly indicated strong concerns regarding the harm caused to hares, other animals, farming landscapes and surrounding habitats.
The Sentencing Council stated that the Category 1 Harm factors for hare coursing offences have been expanded to include “distress, injury and loss of life to animals and serious harm caused to property, land, crops or other wildlife habitat, alongside injury and distress caused to humans”.
Further changes made to the guideline after consultation include an increase in the sentencing starting points, with the top of the range for the most serious cases now set at 18 weeks.
Policing
Chief Inspector Kevin Lacks-Kelly, who is the head of the UK National Wildlife Crime Unit, welcomed the new guidelines.
He said: “I am confident we can continue to improve the Policing response to Hare Coursing and know that consistent justice will follow.
“Sentences across the country varies depending on several factors, and having guidance in place will lead to more proportionate and consistent sentencing across the UK and protect our communities.”