Meet new sheriffs on Scotland’s Sentencing Council working on rape offence guidelines and wildlife crime

The Scottish Sentencing Council has announced the appointment of three new members to fill vacant positions.

The new members, all of whom have been appointed for five-year terms by the Lord Justice General, Lord Pentland, will now work on completing new guidelines on rape offences as well as environmental and wildlife crime guidelines.

Also on the agenda for the Council is the development of guidelines on sentencing people with mental health issues.

The Right Hon. Lord Beckett, the Lord Justice Clerk and Chair of the Council, said: “I am delighted to welcome Sheriff Pattison, Summary Sheriff Michie and Summary Sheriff McDonald to the Scottish Sentencing Council.

“The knowledge and expertise these new members bring will be invaluable.

“I would also like to take this opportunity to thank former members Sheriff Amel Elfallah, who left on her appointment to a new judicial office, and Lord Colbeck and Susan Fallone JP, who both left when their terms with the Council finished. We are grateful to them for their significant contribution to the Council’s work during their time with us.

“Our new members join us during a milestone year as the Council approaches its 10th anniversary. Building on the strong foundations of our first decade, we are now entering an important phase of work, which includes completion of guidelines on rape offences, and the progression of guidelines on domestic abuse, sexual assault, sentencing after a guilty plea, and indecent images of children.

“We are also continuing our work on environmental and wildlife crime guidelines, as well as the development of guidelines on sentencing people with mental health and related issues, recognising the complex challenges faced by courts in such cases.

Meet the new Council members

• Sheriff Pattison has been a sheriff for 14 years, working initially in Aberdeen and Ayr sheriff courts and latterly as a floating sheriff across all the courts in South Strathclyde, Dumfries and Galloway. He was appointed as a temporary High Court judge in 2021.
• Summary Sheriff Michie was appointed as a summary sheriff in September 2020. She initially served as a floating summary sheriff throughout the sheriffdom of Tayside, Central and Fife, but has been based in Falkirk since 2022.
• Summary Sheriff McDonald was appointed as a floating summary sheriff in October 2021, becoming a resident summary sheriff in Glasgow in April 2024.