Thomas Cashman has appealed to have his jail term reduced after he murdered Olivia Pratt-Korbel, nine.
Cashman was jailed for 42 years less than three weeks ago for Olivia's murder, sparking outrage when he refused to turn up for the sentencing and face the girl's family.
The Court of Appeal confirmed yesterday it had received an application for Cashman's jail term to be reduced. An application was not made to appeal the conviction for murder.
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A single appeal court judge will now decide if Thomas Cashman should be given the opportunity to appeal. If he is, the case will then be heard by three judges sitting at the Court of Appeal Criminal Division.
Cashman could have been given a whole life order, which are handed out for the "most serious cases of murder" according to the Sentencing Council, and would mean he would never be released from prison. Instead Cashman was given a life sentence and must serve a minimum of 42 years before he will be allowed to apply for parole.
This morning the Attorney General's Office confirmed to the ECHO that Cashman's sentence had been referred for being unduly lenient. An Attorney General's Office spokesperson said: "We have received a request for this sentence to be considered under the Unduly Lenient scheme. The law officers have 28 days from sentencing to consider the case and make a decision."
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The office now has a deadline of May 1, 28 days on from Cashman's sentencing on April 3, to decide whether to refer the complaint to the Court of Appeal. Judges could potentially increase his 42-year sentence to a whole life term.
During her sentencing remarks after Cashman's trial, Justice Amanda Yip said: "For the murder of Olivia, there is only one sentence that can be passed: that is a mandatory life sentence. Let there be no misunderstanding about this, the sentence will be one of life imprisonment.
"That means that the defendant may spend the rest of his days in prison. However, for reasons I shall explain, this is not a case which requires a whole life order."
She she decided a whole life tariff was not merited because the planning and premeditation in his attack was not directed at Olivia.
She went on to say: "Had he paused to think for one moment, it would have been obvious that this was a family home and that others, perhaps including children, were at risk. But the defendant was focused only on the murder of Joseph Nee and no one else mattered to him."
The ECHO is campaigning for a change in the law to close a loophole that allows criminals to hide from their sentencing hearings. The campaign calls for the government to stop dragging its feet and swiftly bring in a change in the law that will force killers like Cashman to appear in the dock and face the consequences of the horror they have caused.
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