A genuine belief by an offender that the victim was unfaithful cannot justify or ameliorate the seriousness of domestic violence offending, even if the belief turns out to be correct. Where the discount for a plea of guilty is not in dispute, the notional starting point should be examined to ensure discounts do not conceal a manifestly excessive sentence, but the ultimate question remains whether the sentence actually imposed was unreasonable or plainly unjust. A sentencing judge's express reference to subjective matters defeats a submission that insufficient weight was given to those matters, absent other evidence or indicia.
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