The indicative 3-year custodial head sentence in the Whyte guideline for dangerous driving occasioning death applies only where the offender's moral culpability is high due to the presence of aggravating factors; it is not the starting point for a typical case with no aggravating features. A sentencing judge must independently exercise the sentencing discretion and not treat the guideline in a prescriptive manner. Where the guideline's typical case is predicated on a plea of guilty of limited utilitarian value, the discount for the absence of a plea cannot be calculated by simply adding a percentage to the indicative term.
The full text is available to signed-in members, including the 4 later cases that cite this judgment.