The Doran discount for voluntary admissions applies where proof of guilt depends entirely on the offender's confession, even where the offence is known to investigators and the complainant has the theoretical capacity to give evidence but refuses to do so. Sentencing judges must make the application of the discount transparent in their reasons for each charge to which it applies, unless the discount is the inescapable inference from the sentence imposed. The scale of the discount varies: it is generally more substantial for confessions to unknown crimes, less so for known offences, and least where the confession merely provides additional detail of existing allegations.
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