Cunningham v The King

In *Cunningham v The King*, the appellant, Cunningham, appealed against a sentence imposed by the District Court of South Australia. The appeal concerned the imposition of a non-parole period in relation to a conviction for child pornography offences.

The central legal issue before the Full Court of the Supreme Court of South Australia was whether the sentencing judge had erred in law by imposing a non-parole period when the appellant was sentenced to a term of imprisonment for offences under the *Criminal Law Consolidation Act 1935* (SA). Specifically, the Court had to determine if the provisions of the *Correctional Services Act 1982* (SA) mandated the imposition of a non-parole period in such circumstances.

The Court reasoned that the *Correctional Services Act 1982* (SA) requires the imposition of a non-parole period for any sentence of imprisonment exceeding 12 months, unless specific exceptions apply. The offences for which Cunningham was convicted fell within the ambit of this general rule, and no exceptions were applicable. Therefore, the sentencing judge had correctly applied the law in imposing a non-parole period.

The appeal was dismissed, and the sentence imposed by the District Court, including the non-parole period, was affirmed.