Jerry Tolbert was just 14 when he used an imitation firearm to rob someone of their mobile phone, a silver Nokia 6280 worth £190, in what was described during his 2007 trial as an “unremarkable but serious” crime.
Despite his age and the nature of the offence, the judge decided the child in the dock, then still only 15, was dangerous and sentenced him to a draconian indefinite jail term, which has since been abolished from the statute books.
