Where a sentencing judge declares the full period of pre-sentence custody, orders the sentence to be served concurrently with a prior sentence (rather than cumulatively), and fixes a parole eligibility date that falls between the positions advanced by the Crown and the defence, the structure of the sentence may adequately reflect the totality principle even where the offender was also serving time under the prior sentence during the pre-sentence custody period. The discretion under s 156 of the Penalties and Sentences Act 1992 (Qld) to make sentences concurrent rather than cumulative, even for offending committed while on parole for similar offences, is a relevant tool for ameliorating the crushing effect of cumulation.
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