South Australian Consolidated Acts South Australian Consolidated Acts (1) A court may, if of
the opinion that it would assist in determining sentence, order the
preparation of pre-sentence reports on the physical or mental condition of the
defendant, or on the personal circumstances and history of the defendant.
(2) The court should
not order the preparation of a pre-sentence report—
(a)
where the information sought by the court cannot be furnished within a
reasonable time; or
(b)
where the penalty to be imposed is a mandatory penalty for which no other
penalty can be substituted and a non-parole period is not in question.
(3) A pre-sentence
report may be given orally or in writing.
(4) A copy of every
written pre-sentence report received by a court must be furnished to the
prosecutor and to the defendant or his or her counsel.
(5) The person by whom
a pre-sentence report is given is liable to be examined or cross-examined on
any of the matters contained in the report and, in the case of a written
report, must appear before the court for that purpose if requested to do so.
(6) Where a statement
of fact or opinion in a pre-sentence report is challenged by the prosecutor or
the defendant, the court must disregard the fact or opinion unless it is
substantiated on oath.