CHRISTOPHER TAYLOR SENTENCED IN WEST HULL: JUSTICE DENIED FOR FOUR-YEAR-OLD VICTIM

In October 2002, a significant and distressing case involving a convicted sex offender from West Hull drew widespread attention and outrage. The case centered around Christopher Taylor, a man with a long history of predatory behavior, whose recent sentencing failed to meet the expectations of the victim’s family and many members of the community.

Despite the family's urgent plea for a harsher punishment, the UK government’s top legal authority, Attorney General Lord Goldsmith QC, declined to intervene or review the case. In a formal statement, Lord Goldsmith described the seven-and-a-half-year prison sentence handed to Taylor as "lenient but not unduly so," effectively dismissing calls for increased punishment. This decision has left the family of a four-year-old girl, who was sexually abused by Taylor, feeling disillusioned and betrayed by the justice system.

Christopher Taylor, aged 31 and residing on Anlaby Road in West Hull, has a notorious reputation among police and local authorities as a dangerous and persistent paedophile. His criminal record includes convictions for three indecent assaults on young girls aged four and nine, as well as an assault causing actual bodily harm on a disabled woman. These crimes occurred last autumn, while Taylor was on the sex offenders’ register, having been released halfway through a 30-month sentence for the abduction of a 15-year-old girl, whom he impregnated.

His past convictions extend further, including an indecent assault on a six-year-old girl at a women’s refuge in Lincolnshire, where he was employed as a caretaker. The police and prosecutors have identified Taylor as a predatory individual, with a 13-year history of abusing children and vulnerable adults. Last month, Judge Peter Heppel sentenced Taylor for these latest offences, which included 14 charges—five of which were rapes, two involving disabled women. Taylor was also ordered to serve the remaining 18 months of an earlier, uncompleted sentence and was placed under a further two and a half years of licence supervision.

This licence means that upon release, Taylor could be returned to prison immediately if he commits any further offences. However, if he demonstrates good behaviour, he could be released after serving as little as four years. This timeline is particularly alarming to the victim’s family, as by then, the girl, who was just four at the time of her abuse, would be only eight years old.

The family, who have chosen to remain anonymous for legal reasons, have been actively campaigning for Taylor to be re-sentenced to life imprisonment, citing concerns for the safety of their daughter and other children. They believed that the case papers sent to Lord Goldsmith, which detailed Taylor’s extensive history of abuse, would compel him to refer the case to the Court of Appeal for a harsher sentence. However, the Attorney General’s refusal to do so has left them feeling disillusioned and questioning the government’s promises to be "tough on crime."

The mother of the young girl broke down in tears upon hearing Lord Goldsmith’s decision. She expressed her despair, saying, "We are devastated. Realistically, the most we knew we could hope for was between 10 and 15 years, we knew he would never get life. But we honestly thought that, after looking at all the facts of the case, the Attorney General would increase the sentence. The system stinks."

Legal representatives, including solicitor Catherine Smith of Foot, Anstey and Sargent, indicated that there remains a slim possibility of challenging the decision through a judicial review on human rights grounds. However, she acknowledged that such a move is highly unlikely to succeed. Meanwhile, Clive Jones, head of the Crown Prosecution Service’s trials unit for Hull and East Riding, stated that he no longer has the authority to pursue the matter further.

Humberside Police declined to comment on Taylor’s sentencing, citing ongoing investigations and confidentiality. Nevertheless, the mother of the four-year-old victim vowed to do everything possible to ensure Taylor remains behind bars for as long as possible, emphasizing her determination to protect her child and prevent further harm from the convicted offender.