The statistical median of sentences for an offence type cannot be assumed to represent sentences for offences at the middle of the range of objective seriousness. Without knowing the facts of the cases at or near the median, no inference can be drawn about the appropriate sentence for a mid-range offence. A sentencing judge's finding that an offence falls 'below the middle of the range' does not equate to a finding that it is 'substantially below' the middle of the range.
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