"…………In a case such as this where there has been such a lengthy delay between offence and sentence and where the offender is rehabilitated, it is the fact of imprisonment rather than the length of the sentence which will be of greatest significance to punish the offender and denounce his conduct. Although general deterrence is important it can never be allowed to dictate a sentence which is not proportionate to the offence committed or appropriate to punish the particular offender before the court."
31 In arguing that the sentence was excessive Mr Byrne raised the issue of whether this Court should take into account in determining what was the appropriate sentence to have been imposed in 1982 and the practices and principles that applied at that time the fact that remissions were then available to prisoners. There are many cases that indicate how the remission system operated and it is fair to say that, had the applicant been sentenced in 1982, he would, in all probability if not certainty, have received the benefit of a reduction of one third of his sentence. At this time remissions only applied to the head sentence and not to the non-parole period; see generally R v Maclay (1990) 19 NSWLR 112 as to the history and application of remissions. But I do not believe that it is appropriate for this Court to try to replicate, not only the sentencing practices of 1982, but also executive practices of that time in respect to the treatment of prisoners. I do not believe that this is what the decision in MJR requires.
32 I do not reach this conclusion for the same reason that the sentencing judge did. It is true that a sentencing court in 1982 did not take into account the existence of remissions, or ought not to have done so: R v O'Brien [1984] 2 NSWLR 449. But this was so that the sentence was not increased in order to counter the fact that remissions applied to it; R v Maclay at 121. Courts rarely take into account executive policy when imposing sentence because it may vary from time to time and the court has no control over it. For this reason a court does not take into account the likelihood that an offender might be deported at the end of the non-parole period. But the policy behind such an approach does not seem to me to be applicable in the situation of the applicant when what is being sought is a reduction in the actual sentence to be served on the basis of executive action that would have occurred had he been sentenced in 1982. However, I do not understand that this Court is required to ensure that the applicant would not have to serve any longer in prison for the offences than if he had been sentenced in 1982.
33 The applicant in Moon raised a similar submission as to the relevance of remissions. It was rejected relying upon what was said in Maclay and the legislative intention behind the Sentencing Act 1989 and the accompanying transitional provisions. In effect it was held that the legislature had made plain that prisoners were not to receive the benefit of remissions after a particular date regardless of when the offences had been committed. This aspect of the decision in Moon was not revisited in MJR. This Court should follow Moon but, in any event, I was a member of that Court and believed then, as I do now, that the reasons given for dismissing that ground of appeal by Whealy J were correct. Although the issue was raised again but not decided in R v Slater [2003] NSWCCA 178, the present facts do not appear to me sufficiently different from those in Moon to justify any different result. There is no decision, to which we were referred, where this Court had taken into account the existence of remissions at the time of the commission of the offences as a mitigating factor.
34 Two further grounds of appeal were raised after the Court reserved relating to the failure of the Judge to find special circumstances to reduce the non-parole period from the statutory norm provided in s 44 of the Crimes (Sentencing Procedure) Act. The basis upon which it is now said that the Judge ought to have found special circumstances arose during argument before this Court and was not canvassed with his Honour. However, that does not mean that this Court should necessarily refuse to consider the argument as there is every likelihood that, had the Judge been given the opportunity to consider the submission, he would have found in favour of it.
35 The Judge applied s 44 of the Crimes (Sentencing Procedure) Act, as he was obliged to do, and determined that there were no special circumstances calling for a reduction in the non-parole period. I am not satisfied that, had he been sentencing the applicant for more recent offences, he could not have come to that decision. Nor am I prepared to find that there were necessarily any special circumstances arising by reason of the subjective case of the applicant, although in R v EGC [2005] NSWCCA 392 this Court found special circumstances in the fact that a custodial sentence was being imposed 16 years after the offending.
36 However, in 1982 there was no provision, such as now exists in s 44, requiring that there be special circumstances before departing from a statutory relationship between the non-parole period and the balance of the term. In 1982 the Parole of Prisoners Act 1966, which was in operation at the relevant time, placed no such restriction on the setting of the non-parole period. The question then arises as to whether the Judge ought to have applied the practice as to the fixing of a non-parole period that was operating in 1982 and which was more liberal than that which exists under present legislation. Such an approach would be consistent with the policy expounded and applied in MJR. However, no consideration was given to this issue in that decision and Sully J, who gave the leading judgment on the disposition of the appeal, considered whether there were special circumstances in fixing the non-parole period and noted that the relationship between the overall sentence and the non-parole period was to be 77 per cent; see [180] point [6]. As I have already noted this Court in EGC also applied s 44 and considered whether there were any special circumstances arising from the subjective case of the applicant.
37 It seems to me that this Court should endeavour to apply the practice that existed in 1982 in specifying a non-parole period because that practice would favour the applicant. It can do so on the basis that special circumstances under s 44 are to be found in the fact that there was a different sentencing practice in relation to fixing a non-parole period in 1982 which did not require a finding of special circumstances in order to avoid a statutory relationship between the non-parole period and the balance of the term. In Tatana v R [2006] NSWCCA 398 it was held that special circumstances could be found in order to overcome unfair disparity between co-offenders that would arise from "a too literal application of conventional sentencing principles and the requirements of s 44". It is consistent with that approach to find special circumstances in the present case in order to avoid unfairness that would arise by reason of the delay in the prosecution of the current charges as a result of a change in the law in relation to the determination of the appropriate non-parole period.
38 However to determine what the practice was can lead to the difficulties that were referred to by the Chief Justice in R v PLV (2001) 51 NSWLR 736. It is relatively simple to find the applicable statutory scheme that was in operation but it is more difficult to ascertain how it was applied. For example, there was a difference in approach to the Act identified by this Court in R v Portolesi [1972] 1 NSWLR 105 and the High Court in Power v The Queen (1974) 131 CLR 623 which overruled Portolesi. Power makes it clear that the non-parole period is the minimum period to be served by the offender having regard to all the purposes of punishment including deterrence. Power was approved in Deakin v The Queen (1984) 58 ALJR 367.
39 It seems that in 1982 a non-parole period was fixed at somewhere between a third and a half of the term of the sentence. Clearly one consideration in determining that non-parole period was the seriousness of the offence and the requirement of general deterrence. General deterrence was not a significant matter in the applicant's case because in light of the very lengthy period that had transpired between the offences and the passing of sentence and his reform it was not appropriate to make an example of him to deter others from similar conduct. It seems to me that an appropriate non-parole period would be 18 months because that is in my view the least period that is required to reflect the objective criminality of the offences.
40 In my opinion the application for leave should be granted and the appeal allowed. I propose that the sentences imposed in the District Court be quashed. In lieu the following sentences be imposed:
(a) In respect of Counts 2 to 5 a sentence of imprisonment for 18 months to date from 9 March 2006 with a non-parole period of 9 months to expire on 8 December 2006.
(b) Count 1, and taking into account the matters on the form 1, a sentence of 2 years 3 months to date from 9 December 2006 with a non-parole period of 9 months to expire on 8 September 2007 the date upon which the applicant is to be released to parole.
41 PRICE J: I agree with Howie J.
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