Post by Deleted on Sept 7, 2016 12:26:24 GMT 7
An Australian and a Briton sentenced to decades in a Thai jail for drug dealing have lost an appeal to have their term reduced, their legal team has told the Guardian.
Jake Mastroianni, 26, a DJ from Melbourne in Victoria, will serve two life sentences and Lance Whitmore, 28, an ex-soldier from Bromsgrove in Worcestershire will serve 50 years. The pair appeared shackled together in Bangkok’s criminal court on Tuesday to hear their joint appeal had been rejected.
Jeffrey Stevens, a lawyer whose firm Thailand Bail works with both men, said he was disappointed by what he said was a severe sentence. “Everyone was hoping the sentence would be reduced further,” he said.
He said the pair had the option to take the case to the supreme court but did not plan to do so as further appeals would also delay them from applying to be transferred to prisons in the UK and Australia.
Under Thai law, Whitmore can begin that process in 23 months once he has served four years in prison, although it is not guaranteed to be successful. Mastroianni’s harsher sentence means he can apply to be transferred to Australia in six years’ time. However, because Whitmore pleaded guilty last year, his sentence is half as long as Matroianni’s.
www.theguardian.com/world/2016/sep/07/jake-mastroianni-lance-whitmore-jail-thai-court-appeal
Jake Mastroianni, 26, a DJ from Melbourne in Victoria, will serve two life sentences and Lance Whitmore, 28, an ex-soldier from Bromsgrove in Worcestershire will serve 50 years. The pair appeared shackled together in Bangkok’s criminal court on Tuesday to hear their joint appeal had been rejected.
Jeffrey Stevens, a lawyer whose firm Thailand Bail works with both men, said he was disappointed by what he said was a severe sentence. “Everyone was hoping the sentence would be reduced further,” he said.
He said the pair had the option to take the case to the supreme court but did not plan to do so as further appeals would also delay them from applying to be transferred to prisons in the UK and Australia.
Under Thai law, Whitmore can begin that process in 23 months once he has served four years in prison, although it is not guaranteed to be successful. Mastroianni’s harsher sentence means he can apply to be transferred to Australia in six years’ time. However, because Whitmore pleaded guilty last year, his sentence is half as long as Matroianni’s.
www.theguardian.com/world/2016/sep/07/jake-mastroianni-lance-whitmore-jail-thai-court-appeal
