A sentencing judge is not bound to accept an offender's self-serving account given to the author of a pre-sentence report or forensic psychiatrist, even where that material is unchallenged, if the surrounding circumstances suggest the account is inaccurate. An omission to refer expressly to 'special circumstances' under s 44(2) does not constitute error where the sentencing remarks demonstrate the relevant matters were taken into account. A sentence of 6 months imprisonment for larceny of a leather jacket taken in the context of a domestic dispute, where the item was returned the next day, was manifestly excessive.
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