A sentence of 3 years imprisonment for possession of child pornography significantly exceeds the range of comparable ACT sentences even where the collection includes Level 4 and 5 [name withheld] scale material. The totality principle requires that accumulation of sentences for a series of sexual offences against children not produce a total that is disproportionate to the overall criminality, particularly for a young first offender with a history of childhood sexual abuse. The youth of victims is inherent in the offences charged and does not provide a reason to discount an offender's own youth as a mitigating factor.
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