The mitigating effect of a guilty plea may be reflected not only in a reduction of the head sentence but also in the fixing of the parole eligibility date. A sentencing judge may reduce the head sentence to give credit for a plea while simultaneously postponing parole eligibility beyond the statutory halfway point to prevent the plea from receiving undue weight. The discretion under s 160C(5) of the Penalties and Sentences Act 1992 (Qld) is unfettered and cannot be circumscribed by judge-made rules confining particular sentencing factors to particular components of the sentence.
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