Leave to appeal against sentence may be refused under s 280(1)(b) of the Criminal Procedure Act 2009 (Vic) even where multiple grounds are arguable, if there is no reasonable prospect the total effective sentence would be reduced — particularly where the sentence on one charge is at the lower end of the appropriate range and could have been higher. A sentencing judge's description of the circumstances of offending (such as that offenders 'set out to steal from an elderly and vulnerable woman') should be read in context and does not necessarily constitute an adverse finding that the offenders had prior knowledge of the victim's characteristics.
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