Unpunished: The 3,000 crimes committed by the under-10s

 

Last updated at 15:46pm on 2nd September 2007 Comments

The suspects behind almost 3,000 crimes last year, half of them arson or criminal damage, went unpunished - because they were too young to be prosecuted.

 

Offending by children aged under 10 in England and Wales included about 1,300 incidents of criminal damage and arson and more than 60 sex offences, it has been revealed.

Scroll down for more ...

Police forces recorded 2,840 crimes where the suspect was younger than 10

 

Read more...

• Now police are told they can use Taser guns on children

Children aged nine or under cannot be charged with an offence in England and Wales, although the crime is recorded by police.

The figures were based on data from 32 of the 43 forces in England and Wales and were collated for BBC Radio Five Live under the Freedom of Information Act.

Of the 2,840 crimes where the suspect was under 10, about half were cases of arson or criminal damage.

There were also 66 sexual offences, including a number of sexual assaults on children under 13.

The figures also revealed children too young to be charged were suspected of harassment, wounding and burglary.

They come just three days after a boy was convicting of killing a man when he was just ten years old. The child, now 12, was part of a gang five who stoned a father-of-two to death as he played cricket with his son.

Ian Johnston of the Association of Chief Police Officers said: "The law establishes that any offence committed by children under 10 is not crime.

"Many of these offences are minor acts of damage and by far the large majority of children under 10 would not feature in this data.

"In appropriate cases children can be dealt with effectively under arrangements of care proceedings."

Bob Reitemeier, chief executive of The Children's Society, said the charity wanted the age of criminal responsibility raised to 14.

He said: "If you look at how children are treated by government and legislation you have to be 18 to be able to vote, 16 to have sex and yet 10 to be held accountable for committing a crime."

Those 10 year old criminals should be locked up in stocks and laughed at by passers-by, that will stop then causing crime.

 

Worked in the olden days

Those 10 year old criminals should be locked up in stocks and laughed at by passers-by, that will stop then causing crime.

 

Worked in the olden days

 

I reckon we might have to start calling you Draconian Dave!!:laugh3:

It's true, children only do crimes as they think it makes them look 'big', if they get caught and made to look a fool, they won't do any crimes again.

 

I wonder if the ducking chair has been made illegal yet, no physical harm to the kiddies, just mental harm. Screw the Human Rights Act, it serves to protect criminals and not victims.

It's true, children only do crimes as they think it makes them look 'big', if they get caught and made to look a fool, they won't do any crimes again.

 

I wonder if the ducking chair has been made illegal yet, no physical harm to the kiddies, just mental harm. Screw the Human Rights Act, it serves to protect criminals and not victims.

 

What about thumbscrews and the rack??:rolleyes:

Not those 2, they are torture devices.

 

You want something to make a laughing stock of the criminal, not the harm them.

you can't use the stocks without the requisite rotten fruit. even the stocks is too lenient, lets hit them where it really hurts and bring back sweeping chimneys & working down the mines. if you skive off school to commit criminal offences, you've just volunteered yourself for a working life making yourself of use to the country. forget the child detention centres with their ps2's, tvs, and all the comforts of home.

Those 10 year old criminals should be locked up in stocks and laughed at by passers-by, that will stop then causing crime.

 

Worked in the olden days

:laugh3:

:laugh3:

 

I don't know why you are laughing - you're next!!:P

It says the cops can use tasers. Taser the little bastards.

It says the cops can use tasers. Taser the little bastards.

 

The official slogan could be: "Taser the To**ers!!":rolleyes:

A radio station here has a weekly taser report where people who have been tasered or seen someone tasered can call in and tell the tale. It's theme song is Peter Gabriel's "Shock the Monkey". :laugh3:

A radio station here has a weekly taser report where people who have been tasered or seen someone tasered can call in and tell the tale. It's theme song is Peter Gabriel's "Shock the Monkey". :laugh3:

 

Isn't that a euphemism for something else??:stunned: