Section 19B of the Criminal Law (Sentencing) Act 1988 (SA) is to be reserved for exceptional cases where the appropriate penalty, assuming demonstrated reform, is a bond or suspended sentence. It is not an alternative to these sentencing options but a tool to assist in determining which is appropriate. Where the gravity of offending and criminal history require immediate imprisonment, s 19B should not be invoked. The three-step test requires consideration of: (1) whether the appropriate penalty assuming reform is a bond or suspended sentence; (2) whether there is a real expectation founded on solid grounds of reform; and (3) whether deferral would provide the court with evidence of reform capacity it does not already have.
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