A finding of special circumstances does not require the sentencing judge to reduce the non-parole period where doing so would fail to reflect the criminality of the offence. Where a sentencing judge accepts an offender's version of events, a finding of intentional (as opposed to reckless) infliction of harm may still be open if the accepted version supports that characterisation. Sentencing statistics that do not account for aggravating features such as Form 1 offences and conditional liberty status provide limited support for a claim of manifest excess.
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