After his release, Cowan would go on to offend again, abducting and this time murdering 13-year-old Daniel Morcombe in 2003. However, it is the matter of mandatory sentencing for murderers that Mildren considers "unjust and unfair." He also worries about conditions child rapists might experience in hot, overcrowded prisons, which was his reasoning for shorter sentences given to other sex offenders for crimes reaching back into the 1980s, though how prison maintenance related to sentencing guidelines under the law was unclear.
After being released from prison, Cowan committed further offenses, including abducting and murdering 13-year-old Daniel Morcombe in 2003. Mildren believes mandatory sentencing for murderers is unjust and unfair. He also expresses concern about the conditions child rapists might face in overcrowded prisons, leading him to advocate for shorter sentences for other sex offenders who committed crimes in the 1980s, although the connection between prison maintenance and sentencing guidelines under the law was unclear.