A man who was controversially sentenced to unpaid work after being convicted of raping a 13-year-old girl has had his conviction quashed, leaving his accuser “devastated”.
Sean Hogg, 22, whose case previously caused a row over Scotland’s new sentencing guidelines for young people, will not have to face a retrial.
He was convicted of raping the 13-year-old on various occasions in 2018, when he was aged 17, but was spared jail by Judge Lord Lake at the High Court in Glasgow in April.
He was given 270 hours of unpaid work, with the judge remarking at the time that if Mr Hogg had been over 25, he would have been sentenced to four or five years.
New guidelines for the sentencing of under-25s in Scotland were introduced in January 2022, making rehabilitation rather than punishment the primary consideration for judges.
However, the Crown Office had planned to challenge the “unduly lenient” sentence handed down in Mr Hogg’s case, if his appeal against conviction had not succeeded.
On Wednesday, judges at the Court of Criminal Appeal in Edinburgh quashed his conviction after prosecutors admitted “mistakes were made” during his trial.
Judge Lady Dorrian said there was “an insufficiency of evidence for conviction” and that Mr Hogg’s appeal therefore “must succeed”.
In a previous hearing, both the advocate depute and the trial judge were identified as having failed to push for more detail or issue adequate directions to the jury.
Speaking after Mr Hogg’s conviction was quashed, his accuser said she now had “no hope of closure”. She also urged the Scottish Government not to introduce juryless rape trials, as is currently under consideration.
Her solicitor Aamer Anwar said she felt the police investigation had been “robust”, but criticised the trial judge’s actions as “prejudicial to the defence”.
He said: “When she went to the police, she had a hope for justice. When the jury returned a verdict of guilty, she thought finally she could move on with her life.
“Whilst she appreciates that senior judges have come to this decision after very careful consideration, nonetheless that does not take away from her feeling of devastation and knowing that there is no hope of closure.
“My client will remain ever grateful to the police who carried out a robust investigation, and wishes to thank the jury for doing their duty.
“My client has a question for the judiciary, the Government, and the Lord Advocate. She asks, is there anyone who will say that it was never the intention of sentencing guidelines for under 25s to mean convicted rapists could escape imprisonment?”
Solicitor General Ruth Charteris KC said it would not be in the public interest to seek a retrial, adding: “I know the complainer’s experience of the criminal justice system has been very difficult. I have offered to meet with her and her family if that would be helpful to them.
“The Crown will seek to learn any lessons it can from this case as we continue work to transform the way we prosecute sexual offences.”
