A sentencing judge has discretion to commence a Commonwealth sentence from a date when the offender was in custody only on State offences, where this is necessary to ensure the Commonwealth offence attracts separate punishment reflecting its seriousness. The parity principle does not require intervention where differences in sentences are explicable by different roles and the taking into account of a Form 1 offence. A sentencing judge's failure to find special circumstances is not a denial of procedural fairness where counsel was given the opportunity to be heard on the issue.
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