An offender seeking to rely on mental illness or condition as a mitigating factor on sentence need only establish on the balance of probabilities that the condition played a role of some significance in the offending. The offender is not required to show that their actions were beyond their control, that they had no independent capability of controlling them, or that they had no understanding of what they were doing. The standard for mitigation is distinct from and lower than the standard for defences of mental illness or substantial impairment. Additionally, the impact of mental condition on sentencing is not limited to reduced moral culpability through a causal link to offending — it may also reduce the weight of general deterrence and increase the hardship of incarceration, neither of which requires a causal connection.
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