The retrieval and DNA analysis of items voluntarily discarded by a suspect (such as a cigarette butt dropped on a footpath) does not constitute a 'forensic procedure' under the Crimes (Forensic Procedures) Act 2000 (NSW), and therefore the admissibility protections in s 82 of that Act do not apply to evidence obtained from such items. The R v Henry guideline for armed robbery applies only as a starting point; cases involving offenders with significant criminal histories, a degree of planning, and no plea of guilty fall outside the guideline parameters and warrant sentences substantially above the 4-5 year head sentence indicated in Henry.
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