Rolf Harris jail sentence to be reviewed by attorney general

Rolf Harris arrives at Southwark crown court, where he was jailed for five years, nine months on 12 counts of indecent assault of girls. Photograph: Bogdan Maran/AP

Rolf Harris's prison sentence has been referred to the attorney general for being unduly lenient, it has emerged.
A small number of members of the public were said to have complained to the country's top lawyer about the 84-year-old entertainer's jail term of five years and nine months for 12 counts of indecent assault of girls.
It only takes one person to make contact for the attorney general to have to consider the punishment. Dominic Grieve now has 28 days to decide whether any action should be taken.
Harris, a fixture of popular entertainment for six decades, was jailed for between six and 15 months for each of the 12 counts of indecent assault, dating between 1968 and 1986. A jury unanimously convicted him of the charges on Monday.
The judge, Mr Justice Sweeney, made some jail terms concurrent and some consecutive, giving a total which was less than some observers had predicted. With good behaviour Harris could potentially leave jail on licence in less than three years.

Before passing sentence, Sweeney told an expressionless Harris that he had taken advantage of the trust provided by his fame.
"You have shown no remorse for your crimes at all... Your reputation now lies in ruins, you have been stripped of your honours, but you have no one to blame but yourself."
In the case of three of the four victims, Sweeney told Harris, he "took advantage of the trust placed in you because of your celebrity status" to carry out the attacks. With the final victim, the childhood friend of Harris's daughter Bindi Nicholls, who Harris began grooming aged 13, the star abused a different type of trust; the trust placed in him by the girl's parents.
"You clearly got a thrill from committing the offences whilst others were present or nearby," the judge told Harris. "Whilst such others did not realise what you were doing, their presence added to the ordeal of your victims."
The Australian-born TV star and artist, wearing a grey suit, white shirt and colourful striped tie, stood for the sentence but otherwise expressed no emotion. After Sweeney told the pair of dock officers flanking Harris, "Thank you, you may take him down" he was led out of the far door of the dock to custody suites. One of the officers carried Harris's prison bag, a striped leather suitcase.

He was watched in court by around a dozen relatives and supporters, including Nicholls, 50, but not his wife of 56 years, Alwen. The supporters also gave no reaction to the sentence, merely talking quietly among themselves.
Harris faces the possible loss of much of his estimated £11m fortune. He will face a claim for significant prosecution costs, to be determined at a later date, and several of his victims have begun claims for compensation.
Peter Watt, director of national services at the NSPCC children's charity, which says it has received a number of calls from other possible victims of Harris, said the entertainer had been "opportunistic and brazen in targeting young girls and women".
Watt said: "He took advantage of their trust in him and we heard through the evidence of his courageous victims just how profoundly damaging his abuse was on them for decades after.
"This sentence reflects the seriousness of his crimes and hopefully those he preyed upon can finally find some peace. It sends a message that no one is untouchable and justice can come at any time."
The Churches Child Protection Advisory Service, an abuse charity, said the Harris case should prompt a law obliging adults to report colleagues whom they suspect of abuse. Simon Bass, chief executive of the charity, said people had been "turning a blind eye" to abuse for decades.
Harris showed no obvious emotion as the prosecution read at times distressing victim impact statements about the effect of his assaults on the four women.
The statement from Nicholls' former friend, now a woman in her 50s, explained that Harris's assaults, from the age of 13 until her late 20s, devastated her life. The woman said she was left feeling "dirty, grubby and disgusting". She became an alcoholic who suffered panic attacks and could not hold down a job or a loving relationship.
"I have never had a meaningful relationship whilst sober. I have also never been able to hold down a job," her statement said. "Rolf Harris had a hold over me that made me a quivering wreck. He made me feel like a sexual object."