Morphy, Sandra

Sandra Morphy pleaded guilty at Aylesbury Crown Court on 24 February 2000 to two counts of running a disorderly house with her husband at Brair Bush House, Ivinghoe, Buckinghamshire, between January 1998 and November 1999.

Ms Morphy admitted that she had allowed sex workers to operate from rooms in her house, for which she had charged them rent.

She was given an eight-month suspended prison sentence and ordered to pay a confiscation order in the sum of £142,186, with a further three years’ imprisonment in default of payment.

Ms Morphy appealed against the confiscation order, arguing that the calculation of her benefit was far in excess of that made from the “rent”. A Single Judge dismissed the appeal in June 2000. An appeal against conviction was dismissed in February 2001.

The CCRC received an application for review of the confiscation order in January 2003.

Following review, the CCRC concluded that the confiscation order imposed was wrong in principle, the sentencing judge having applied too broad a definition of the concept of “obtains” pursuant to section 71(4) of the Criminal Justice Act 1988.

The CCRC referred the confiscation order in January 2006.

The Court of Appeal quashed the confiscation order in October 2006.