The availability of Local Court jurisdiction for an offence is a factor to be taken into account in sentencing in the District Court but is not a universal factor for reduction of sentence. The graded maximum penalties available in the Local Court should not be used to provide proportion or scaling to the assessment of penalty in the District Court. Where a sentencing judge makes an express finding of special circumstances under s 44 of the Crimes (Sentencing Procedure) Act 1999 (NSW), the aggregate sentence must reflect that finding; an arithmetical failure to do so will be corrected on appeal.
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