A direction that the jury may infer intent from the manner of disposal of bodies is in substance a consciousness of guilt direction requiring a full Edwards direction identifying alternative explanations. However, failure to give such a direction will not occasion a miscarriage of justice where the evidence of intentional killing is overwhelming. For double murder sentencing in Queensland, a 30-year non-parole period is reserved for the worst imaginable examples of murder; premeditated execution-style killings motivated by financial self-interest, without features of torture, sexual violence, or killing of children, warrant a non-parole period of 24 years.
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