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This report is part of the Sentencing Spotlight series. These publications present statistics on sentencing outcomes for offences finalised in Queensland courts.

Our Sentencing Spotlight on dangerous operation of a vehicle causing death, defined under section 328A(4) of the Criminal Code,provides insight into cases sentenced between July 2005 and June 2017.

Our research found:

• a total of 363 offenders were sentenced
• 33.5% of offenders were adversely affected by alcohol/drugs – one of four aggravating circumstances for this offence
• the average age of offenders was 32 and 82% of offenders were males
• Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders made up 8.9% of all sentenced offenders
• 52.8% of offenders had no previous criminal history
• 88.6% of all offenders sentenced with dangerous operation of a vehicle causing death as their most serious offence (MSO) pleaded guilty
• 99.4% received a custodial penalty, with the average sentence of imprisonment being 5.2 years.
• there were no repeat offenders for this specific offence during the 12-year data period.

Read the media release

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Enter the courtroom and hear the facts about a dangerous driving court case that was based on real-life events. Decide the sentence, judge for yourself .