A sentencing judge's impending retirement cannot override the obligation to provide a fair hearing, and a refusal to adjourn a plea hearing to obtain relevant neuropsychological evidence on that basis constitutes a miscarriage. However, where fresh neuropsychological evidence shows the offender's intellectual limitations did not reduce moral culpability because the offending was primarily attributable to alcohol use, and the gravity of the offending and sentencing purposes of deterrence and community protection are paramount, no lesser sentence need be imposed despite the procedural error.
The full text is available to signed-in members, including the 8 later cases that cite this judgment.