Drug addiction can be a mitigating circumstance even for the inherently serious crime of trafficking in schedule 1 drugs, especially where there is a genuine effort at rehabilitation bearing fruit. The head sentence primarily addresses deterrence, while the suspension point provides the opportunity to account for mitigating circumstances such as addiction and rehabilitation. A sentencing judge must impose separate sentences for each offence; failure to do so constitutes error requiring re-sentencing.
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3 of the 6 citing cases carry a classified treatment. How each court treated it is available to signed-in members.