I Give Good Hugs

What should his punishment be?

On August 25th 2016, 19-year-old Shana Grice was murdered by her ex-boyfriend, Michael Lane, who was stalking her. She had reported this to the police five times. Following their breakup, Lane put a tracker device on her car which notified him via his mobile phone every time her vehicle moved. On 8 February 2016, Grice complained to police about being stalked by Lane after receiving unwanted flowers and damage to her car. On 24 March 2016, Lane snatched her phone and grabbed her hair. He was arrested on suspicion of assault but later released and Grice was issued with a fixed penalty notice by the police for wasting their time by not disclosing she had been in a relationship with him. On 9 July 2016, Lane used a stolen key to let himself into her home and watch her while she was apparently sleeping. She was actually awake, had heard his footsteps and hid under the duvet. She heard a man breathing in her room. Shortly afterwards, the man left, and when Grice looked out her window she saw Lane walking away. He was arrested for theft, given a police caution and told to stay away from Grice. The following day, 10 July 2016, she received around seven phone calls from a blocked number, including one with heavy breathing. She was told there were no further lines of inquiry and the case would be left on file. On 12 July 2016, she reported to police that she was being followed by Lane. Police treated the case as "low risk", but that the investigating officer would be made aware. On 4 August 2016, she saw Lane loitering outside her home. She confided in her friend, Joann Pumphrey, that she was afraid that police wouldn't believe her because of her previous fine for wasting police time. Although Joann was a witness to this, Grice didn't report the incident to the police. On 25 August 2016, Lane waited until Grice was alone at home, then let himself in, slit her throat and set fire to her bedroom with her in it. Lane was sentenced to life imprisonment with a minimum term of 25 years.