Dr Clare Farmer’s collaborative research on ‘Sentencing Inconsistencies: A Case Study’ is published.
Farmer, C., Bagaric, M. & Parsons, I. (2018). Sentencing Inconsistencies: A Case Study, Australian Law Journal, 92(7), 517-528
This article reports the findings of a wide-ranging study into sentencing outcomes for driving offences within four courts in Victoria. The study, led by Dr Clare Farmer, relates to approximately 12,000 sentencing determinations over a four-year period across four Magistrates’ Courts. It notes that there is a high degree of inconsistency regarding sentencing outcomes between the courts, with the use of imprisonment in one court three times higher than in another. The results of the study cast raise questions regarding current sentencing practice, from the perspective of securing the rule of law virtues of consistency and predictability.