Western Australian Current Acts Western Australian Current Acts (1) A sentence imposed
on an offender must be commensurate with the seriousness of the offence.
(2) The seriousness of
an offence must be determined by taking into account —
(a) the
statutory penalty for the offence; and
(b) the
circumstances of the commission of the offence, including the vulnerability of
any victim of the offence; and
(c) any
aggravating factors; and
(d) any
mitigating factors.
(3) Subsection (1)
does not prevent the reduction of a sentence because of —
(a) any
mitigating factors; or
(b) any
rule of law as to the totality of sentences.
(4) A court must not
impose a sentence of imprisonment on an offender unless it decides that
—
(a) the
seriousness of the offence is such that only imprisonment can be justified; or
(b) the
protection of the community requires it.
(5) A court sentencing
an offender must take into account any relevant guidelines in a guideline
judgment given under section 143.
(6) For the purpose of
subsection (4), an order under section 58 that a person be imprisoned is not a
sentence of imprisonment.
[Section 6 amended: No. 23 of 2001 s. 12.]