The Bugmy principle regarding social deprivation and sentencing does not clearly require a causal link between the background of deprivation and the offending, but establishing such a connection is likely to reduce moral culpability. Childhood exposure to domestic violence is relevant to sentencing even absent evidence of specific psychological damage, though its weight depends on individual assessment. Drug dependence (short of clinical addiction) arising from identifiable stressors such as serious illness is a relevant sentencing consideration, but self-medication through prohibited drugs is not of itself a mitigating factor. The question whether Bugmy requires a causal link remains open.
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