The Court of Criminal Appeal held that the final sentencing judge under the Drug Court Act 1998 (NSW) did not err in setting a sentence commencement date different from the date of arrest, as all periods since arrest were properly categorised and accounted for under s 12(2) of the Drug Court Act and the Crimes (Sentencing Procedure) Act 1999 (NSW). The treatment of a period in custody where the appellant was both bail refused and serving revoked parole for unrelated offences was a discretionary matter under Callaghan principles, and no error of principle was demonstrated. Section 58 of the Crimes (Sentencing Procedure) Act did not constrain the sentencing exercise because the appellant was not serving an existing sentence at the time of either the initial or final sentencing.
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