A sentence of 24 years' imprisonment (18 non-parole) for murder by a 70-year-old offender with advanced endometrial cancer and less than 30% five-year survival was manifestly excessive and crushing, and was reduced to 20 years (14 non-parole). In vehicular murder cases where the defence is accident, the trial judge's directions must not conflate causation with deliberateness, though an error in directing that causation is not in dispute will not result in a substantial miscarriage of justice where the charge as a whole makes clear that the central issue is whether the collision was deliberate or accidental.
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